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| Cross River State Commissioner for Health Inyang Asibong |
Anokwuru Uche Alexis|12 September 2018
Following recent reports of Cholera outbreak in some parts of the country, the Cross River State Commissioner for Health, Dr Inyang Asibong, has said that there is, at the moment, no report of the outbreak in the State. She is hereby calling on the general public to be on red alert and practice good environmental and personal hygiene. This piece of information is contained in a press release dated 10th September and signed by the state health boss.
This press release reads thus, ‘There’s currently no report of Cholera outbreak in the State, but however trained Epidemic Rapid Responders in the State are available for any outbreak investigations. We have one of the best State Surveillance System in the country that is sensitive enough to pick-up and report any suspected case to the Emergency Operation Centre.
‘Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium Vibrio cholerae, and has claimed more than 28,800 lives globally. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days, while vomiting and muscle cramps may also occur. Improved sanitation, clean water, cholera vaccines and constant handwashing are some of the ways it can be prevented.’ Dr. Inyang Asibong, Commissioner for Health.
The Risk factors for Cholera include contamination of surface drinking water, open defecations in some communities, poor borehole maintenance, poor adherence to hand washing hygiene and environmental practices.
Anokwuru writes from Calabar
