The Department of Public Health in Kuria, Migori County, has sounded a warning of a possible outbreak of Malaria and other water-bone ailments following a change of weather currently experienced in the region.
“There is likelihood that we may experience an upsurge cases of Malaria and other water-bone related diseases in this region due to the bad weather being experienced in this area,” said local Public Health Officer, Calvince Otieno.
Otieno said the health Department was planning to spray mosquito breeding sites with insecticides and asked institutions to spray their compounds too.
At the same time, the Officer asked members of the public to ensure that they slept under bed nets all the time as a measure to protect themselves against mosquito bites.
He regretted that a large number of treated mosquito nets distributed to Wananchi in the area recently were being misused by the recipients.
The Ministry of Health in collaborated with foreign partners, including USAID, recently distributed millions of treated mosquito nets in the County in a bid to strengthen the war against malaria.
Migori is one of the regions that benefited within the Lake region, which bears the highest Malaria burden. Others included Homa Bay, Kisumu, Vihiga, Siaya, Busia, Bungoma and Kakamega Counties.
Malaria is a life-threatening parasitic disease that accounts for one in five of all childhood deaths in Africa.
In Kenya, malaria affects 20 million people every year and claims approximately 34,000 Kenyan lives every year.
Otieno explained that a survey conducted in the region recently, however, found out that most of the freely distributed bed nets had been used as fences to protect kitchen gardens from destruction by poultry.
The medic noted that some of the nets had also been sold by the beneficiaries to citizens of a neighboring Country.
“Some residents also view the usage of the nets as a taboo and cannot sleep under them fearing evil spirits to haunt them at night, according to sources within the local community,” he said.
By George Agimba
