PESHAWAR: The health department has decided to establish diarrhoea treatment centres in Malakand and Lower Dir to ensure adequate treatment of the people suffering from acute watery diarrhoea.

“The decision was taken after detection of 13 cholera cases in Malakand district,” Dr Irshad Ali Roghani, the director public health at the office of director-general health services, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, told Dawn.

He said that he along with Director-General Health Dr Shaukat Ali visited Malakand district and people in the affected areas. He said that it was decided to set up two wards, one each at district headquarters hospital Timergara in Lower Dir and district headquarters hospital Batkhela in Malakand, to provide prompt services to the people, who were brought there with diarrhoea.

“We have planned to establish a 20-bed ward in Timergara and 15-bed in Batkhela where the affected people will be hospitalised for treatment. Samples would be also collected from the suspected cholera patients there,” he said.

Official says cases have been detected in the areas but no death has been recorded

Dr Roghani said that the World Health Organisation had pledged to support the health department to ensure that the patients got services as per international protocol. “In the past few months, 108 suspected patients have been admitted to Timergara hospital. They were discharged from the hospital after their recovery,” he said.

The departments of public health engineering and irrigation as well as district administration were also collaborating with the health department to come up with multi-sectoral approach and put brakes on the water-related ailments in future.

“Most of the cases have been diagnosed in those localities where water pipes have been mixed with sewerage lines. It causes cholera to people. We are also providing clean drinking water to the people in those areas so that they don’t develop health issues,” said Dr Roghani.

He said that Health Secretary Mahmood Aslam Wazir was in touch with the WHO and line departments for better management of the infected patients to make it sure that the ward were established as soon as possible.

“In both the hospitals, we have trained staff including doctors, nurses and paramedics, who can manage patients,” he said. However, the new dedicated units were important to provide medical aid to patients and manage cases in timely manner to avoid medical complications, he added.

“So far, no death has been recorded due to cholera or diarrhoea but we are strengthening the facilities due to the ongoing monsoon season in which there are more chances of water-borne ailments,” said Dr Roghani.

He said that the world health agency was requested to help the department in setting up new wards and training of staff so that the patients could be managed effectively. The WHO will also provide help to the department to ensure that the people use clean water and stay away from host of diseases caused by contaminated water.

“So far, the department has been able to keep the situation under control. We respond to the cases due to which more cases are not coming. We are also in the process to have data management cell on the basis of which we will respond promptly. It will give us an idea about the trend of diseases in both the districts and the department will be in a position to respond to it on scientific lines,” he said.

Dr Roghani said that the department had the capacity to diagnose not only cholera but also most of the notifiable diseases in Public Health Reference Laboratory at Khyber Medical University.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2023