NEPALGUNJ, July 30: More than 300 diarrhea patients have been admitted to hospitals in Nepalgunj, while four patients have lost their lives to the disease in the last three days alone.
Bheri Zonal Hospital (BZH), which boasts of a total of 150 beds, has been teeming with diarrhea patients. Dozens of patients, unable to secure beds, are lying on the hospital floor.
On Friday alone, about two dozen patients were admitted to BZH. “We have run out of beds and are unable to accommodate anymore patients,” Dr Bimal Dhakal, medical superintendent of BZH, told myrepublica.com.
Nepalgunj Medical College (NGMC)´s teaching hospital is also full of diarrhea patients.
Cholera suspected
Doctors involved in treating diarrhea patients in Nepalgunj have suspected an epidemic outbreak of cholera. According to BZH´s medical superintendent Dr Dhakal, they have detected cholera bacteria in some patients. “We have sent these bacteria to the government´s lab in Kathmandu for further tests,” Dr Dhakal said.
Cholera could be more devastating than diarrhea as the former is more difficult to contain, said doctors.
Diarrheal outbreak last year killed over 200 people in and around Jajarkot.
Diarrhea, generally caused by contaminated water and rotten food, has especially broken out in settlements that had been inundated by recent floods. People fear that the diarrhea outbreak could be more devastating the days to come as the rainy season is on.
Doctors say that especially those people who have used water from shallow tube-wells erected in areas inundated by recent floods have fallen ill. However, the exact reasons behind the diarrheal outbreak are yet to be ascertained.
Among diarrhea patients are mainly elderly and children. The three patients who died of diarrhea were also elderly and children.
On Wednesday, Kalawati Budhathoki, 65, who was receiving treatment at NGMC´s teaching hospital died. Two children --Jasmin Halwai and Taniya Halwai -- also died of diarrhea the other day. Similarly, 7-year-old Mehesh Edrishi, also succumbed to the disease on Thursday while being taken to Indian town of Baharaich for treatment.
Doctors arrive
A team of doctors from Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD) arrived in Nepalgunj on Friday to assist local doctors and health workers in containing the outbreak. The team led by Dr Pramod Khanal will prepare a work-plan to contain the outbreak.
Meanwhile, District Public Health Office (DPHO) of Banke on Friday launched campaign to spread awareness about the disease. DPHO will start distributing chlorine tablets used for purifying polluted water in diarrhea-affected settlements.
People of Ganeshpur, Salyanibag, Rambag, Phultekra, Dhamboji, Ramnagar and Debafulbari have been the hardest hit by the diarrheal outbreak.
Source: http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=21650
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