Parley weighs in on cholera outbreak

Parliamentary Committee on Health chairperson Mathews Ngwale and Leader of Opposition in Parliament Kondwani Nankhumwa have urged government to conduct mass sensitisation to contain cholera outbreak in 2023.

In separate interviews on Friday, they said the campaigns would lead to taming of the outbreak.

Said Ngwale: “Government should be proactive to address the situation with the urgency it deserves.

“Medical supplies should be available and more healthcare personnel employed to reduce the workload.”

He said the situation is worsening as the health sector is overwhelmed with the surge in cholera cases.

Lilongwe, Blantyre, Mangochi and Salima health facilities are the hardest hit.

Our sister newspaper, The Nation edition of December 30 2022 reported that district health offices (DHOs) have shifted their focus to cholera outbreak and are using cholera vaccine as one mitigating factor.

Ngwale, however, expressed optimism that the situation would improve in 2023 following assurances from the government that funds would be made available for the cause.

He, however, appealed to Malawi’s donor partners to help curb the outbreak which as of Friday had killed 557 people.

On his part, Nankhumwa said mass sensation campaigns would be the best policy direction to let people know what to do to contain the disease.

He said: “We are talking about sanitation and hygienic issues which are critical at community level. We need to deal with the source of the disease.”

Nankhumwa, who is also Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) vice-president (South), said if the outbreak is managed at the source, it would mean less work for the health sector.

Public Health Institute of Malawi statistics shows that as of December 30 2022, the cumulative confirmed cases were at 16 984 while 841 people were admitted in treatment units nationwide.

National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives president Shouts Simeza said in a statement last week that the cholera outbreak has put a strain on nurses and midwives.

He appealed to the Ministry of Health to consider employing 3 000 nurses that are currently jobless.

The World Health Organisation states that the outbreak, which started in March 2022 and has affected all districts, is the largest in Malawi in the past 10 years.

President Lazarus Chakwera on December 8 2022 declared cholera a public health emergency and directed the Presidential Task Force on Covid-19 to take charge of all cholera interventions.

Minister of Health Khumbize Kandodo Chiponda told journalists in Lilongwe on December 22 2022 that during the taskforce first meeting on cholera on December 20 2022, they found that Malawi is ready to contain the outbreak despite a surge in cases.