Health teams monitoring for mosquito-borne diseases

-few cases in some hinterland areas

Minister of Health, Hon. Dr. Frank Anthony says health teams have not diagnosed many cases of mosquito-borne diseases in Regions One, Seven, Eight or Nine, which are often prevalent in those areas during the rainy season.

He said the Ministry’s anti-malaria campaign, which was launched in early May, has helped to safeguard communities.   

“We started out by making sure that we had insecticide impregnated bed nets that were available to people. As you know, these bed nets are very effective in reducing the mosquito population.

If you stay under the bed net during the night, then your chances of being bitten by a mosquito is severely reduced. These bed nets because of the insecticide on the net itself, when a mosquito or any insect for that matter light on the net, they would come in contact with insecticide and they would die,” he said, during Tuesday’s COVID-19 update.

Dr. Anthony said the teams are monitoring all regions, especially those affected by recent flooding.

“So far, we haven’t seen many cases of mosquito borne diseases, although in some areas we have noticed, like in the Upper Mazaruni area, we had noticed unusual increase in some of those diseases and we made sure that those communities received insecticide impregnated bed nets.

So far, in Region One, we haven’t had any unusual reports. Region Two, we have been monitoring the Pomeroon area where the flooding was more severe, and we did some prophylactic kind of work by distributing bleach and ORS to the communities in the Pomeroon, and I think that has helped because we haven’t seen any cases of acute diarrhoeal diseases.”  

Regarding the reported isolated cases of persons developing skin rashes, Minister Anthony said they have been treated and additional medication has been provided in the event of a recurrence.

“We have been able to successfully treat them and leave medication with them in Region Six in some of those communities like in Black Bush Polder where the water is now receding.”

On Friday Minister Anthony handed over 300 treated bed nets to the Neighbourhood Democratic Council for members of the Mibicuri community in Black Blush Polder, while bleach and other cleaning supplies have been dispatched to the Upper Mazaruni and other regions to help residents to sanitise their surroundings.

Minister Anthony said outreach teams are already in those communities doing everything they can to prevent mosquito and water borne diseases.