Just as some countries around the world are battling disasters of varying proportions, the people of Bauchi State seem to be fighting their own demon as cholera outbreak continues to claim the lives of its people. Ishola Michael reports.

IN Bauchi State not fewer than 70 people including children have so far died following an outbreak of
cholera  in some local government areas of the state, just as 1,742 persons have been infected and are lying critically ill at the various health centres across the state. This development sent shivers down the spines of many who are doing everything humanly possible to ward off the disease.

While speaking to newsmen on the issue, the chairman of the State Primary Health Care Developmental Agency, Dr. Musa Dambam Mohammed, lamented that the casualties of this year’s outbreak were far higher than previous years due to what he described as negligence on the part of the people, particularly the relatives of those infected who refused to take the infected to the nearest health care facilities for medical attention, but will rather treat them at home until the situation got out of hand.

Dr Mohammed stated further that the cholera outbreak, which has entered its eighth week, has a staggering death percentage of 3.8  which has never occurred in the state. He added that records available showed that Bauchi Local Government, which has the largest population in the state,  recorded the highest incidence. Said he,“In Bauchi Local Government, 1,368 persons were infected while 31 people lost their lives, and in Ganjuwa Local Government, we recorded 284 cases while 20 people died.  Other affected  local goverments are Shira, Tafawa Balewa and Toro, where between 10 and 30 people have been infected”

Dr Mohammed  explained that the state government had been able to put measures in place to prevent the spread of the disease which, according to him, include spraying of insecticide, free treatment to patients, and enlightenment campaign, among others,  adding that his agency had embarked on the construction of new health centres in Bauchi to take care of the immediate primary health care needs of the people, particularly those who live in the rural areas, and  to accommodate all the victims for proper medical attention and the prevention of its  spread.

According to him, his agency was ready to curtail the outbreak as it had posted medical personnel and drugs to all the health care facilities in the state.

Dr Mohammed disclosed that, all the victims are being treated free of charge with all the drugs they need, adding that  from now on, they will be given three square meals free of charge as government has made provision for their feeding to facilitate their quick recovery. He pointed out that the ATBU Teaching Hospital and other health centres had received allocation for the feeding and free drugs.

The free feeding arrangement, according to him, became necessary because allowing the victims to eat just anything during the period of treatment would  not aid their healing process, pointing out that it is needful to monitor what they ate during the period they were at the centre.

The BSPHCDA boss explained that his agency had sent out staff on surveillance in order to detect areas that are worst hit by the outbreak with the aim of supplying drugs and other intervention aids in order to curtail the spread of the disease.

Checks by the Nigerian Tribune at the ATBUTH, Bauchi, revealed that in the month of March this year, when the outbreak was first reported, 38 children lost their lives, and in the month of April, 20 were reported to have died, while in the month of May and June, 34 and 47 died respectively, excluding those who were said to have died in other health centres across the state as well those who lost their lives in their homes.

A visit to the General Hospital, Bayara, in the outskirts of Bauchi metropolis as well as other centres set aside for the victims, showed personnel of Medicine San Frontier and Red Cross Society of Nigeria as well as other health related NGOs rendering medical service to victims of the outbreak, particularly children, who are in the majority, the seriousness of the situation.

Dr Mohammed, who expressed confidence that the situation would soon be brought under control, said, “In this month of Ramadan, we have  informed our Imams to engage in sensitisation campaigns in their Tafsir (public preaching in mosques) in order to educate the people on the outbreak of the disease and the way it should be prevented, and we have received a lot of support from the Imams “.

He then appealed to the general public to ensure they boil their water before drinking, as well as wash their vegetables and fruits before eating, saying this would go a long way in reducing the spread of the epidemic.

He also advised them to avoid managing  cases of  cholera at home, stating that “you cannot treat cholera at home because it would spread to other places, so the best thing is to take infected persons to the hospital immediately because we observe that it was spread to other communities by trying to treat it at home.

“And we also want to appeal to the people to avoid trooping to the hospital to visit the infected persons`  because they can easily contract it from there and then spread it to other people at home, but you can call the patients on phone or extend your greetings through their relatives,” he added.

Bala Balogun, a father of four,  who lost two of his children  explained that, “When I came back from work last week, I met my wife trying to keep one of the children on her feet and when I asked what was wrong, I was told she had been stooling and vomiting. I immediately rushed her to the hospital and before we came back the next one started to stool and vomit.We also rushed her to the hospital and just before morning, the two of them died at the hospital.

Many other victims narrated their sad stories but the concerned agencies in the state have promised to bring the situation under control, assuring that with the medical measures put in place, the outbreak will soon be over and normalcy will return. They, however, appealed to the people to cooperate by rushing anybody who shows any sign of the disease to the nearest healthcare centre for prompt medical attention.

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