Another cholera outbreak looms

Some Nurses and Doctors of some hospitals in Ghana’s capital, Accra are scared of a possible cholera outbreak as several hospitals begin to record cases of the diarrhoeal disease.

Last year some hospitals in the metropolis created isolation centres to handle cholera cases after an outbreak killed about two hundred people.

But similar makeshift facilities are not yet in place as some hospitals begin recording new cases.

The situation has raised fears of another cholera epidemic.

An anonymous staff of the LEKMA hospital at Teshie told Starr News that with the rains about to start, the hospital fears it might be unable to control another outbreak since there is no isolation centre to house patients.

“Last year we had to let the patients be in the emergency ward which is close to the OPD even though they have to be kept in isolation. We started this building [for them] but the MCE came in and since June [last year] they haven’t done anything about it.

“With the rains coming, we are afraid that the cholera would come...and because it is very infectious we want the isolation ward built quickly”.

Minority members of parliament last week condemned President John Mahama for his failure to comment on the country’s cholera situation when he delivered his State of the Nation Address in February.

Presenting what the Minority called the “true State of the Nation Address”, Minority Leader Osei Kyei Mensah-Bonsu said the President’s [selective] support for Ebola-stricken countries smacks of hypocrisy.

"In his 2015 State of the Nation Address, our president could not spare one sentence or even one word on Cholera,” he lamented.

According to the Minority leader, “In 2014, the outbreak of Cholera assumed epidemic levels in Ghana. Indeed 2014 was the worst year since the early 70s that the nation had witness such high levels of cholera infections. In 2014, reported cases exceeded 22,800, out of which 205 people died.

“As the chairman of the authority of heads of states and governments in the ECOWAS zone, the President had to show solidarity with his colleagues in the sub-region, however, it is profoundly important that the president shows same if not greater care for his fellow Ghanaians who became so traumatised with the cholera outbreak,” how prepared the country is towards tackling another outbreak.

“Mr. President, charity begins at home,” the Suame MP advised.

The disease has become a yearly affair in Ghana, especially in the rainy season.

It is worsened by the filth and insanitary situation in the national capital Accra as well as other cities and towns across the country.

Last year, close to 29,000 people were affected by the disease with about 200 dying nationwide.

Cholera is an acute diarrhoeal illness caused by a bacteria: Vibrio cholerae that can result in a profound and rapidly progressive dehydration and death. Humans become infected incidentally but once infected we act as vehicles for spread. Ingestion of water and food contaminated by infected human feces is the common means of acquiring the disease.

The main symptoms are profuse painless watery diarrhoea without fever and (often) with vomiting of clear fluid. These symptoms usually start suddenly, one to five days after ingestion of the bacteria. The diarrhoea is frequently described as "rice water" in nature and may have a fishy odor or somewhat sweet inoffensive odour.

An untreated person with cholera may produce 10-20 liters of diarrhea a day with fatal results. If the severe diarrhea and vomiting are not aggressively treated it can, within hours, result in life-threatening dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.

Cholera is diagnosed by identifying the bacteria in stool. The mainstay of treatment is rapid replacement of fluids and electrolytes. Antibiotics are also given to shorten the course and duration of the symptoms, but people will recover without them if they are adequately rehydrated. Less than 1% of people who contract cholera will die from it, if it is treated quickly and properly.

Cholera is easily preventable if proper sanitary practices are followed. Provision of safe water and facilities for proper disposal of faeces, and preparation and storage of food under hygienic conditions are essential in the prevention and control of cholera. Avoid eating cold meals from roadside chop bars and restaurants.

A cholera vaccin (both in injectable and oral form) is available in some countries, but immunisation is not strongly recommended because it only provides immunity for a few months and this immunity is not very reliable.