Malaria prevalence shoots to 60% average

By Arnest Tumwesige

GULU-  Malaria prevalence in Gulu district has shot up from an average of 20% as per the previous year 2014 to 60%.

According to Yoweri Idiba, the district bio statistician, the weekly reports for the month of May indicate that the cases reported have been progressively increasing.

Idiba notes that in some facilities like Awoo health center in Lakwana Sub County where tests are carried out, the prevalence is between has reached 80%.

Dr. Robert Ongom the acting District Health Officer (DHO) told New Vision on Tuesday that the high cases can be attributed to absence of Indoor Residual Spray (IRS) exercise which stopped in October last year.

Dr. Ongom notes that the effectiveness of IRS is only for a period of six months which has now elapsed causing high multiplication of anopheles mosquitos which causes malaria.

He however emphasized that people were not adhering to the available interventions like the use of treated mosquito’s nets which the government had supplied.

He explained that people are using the nets to tether their animals, shelter chicken and others had kept them for visitors.

“We have got reliable information from the community and the health workers that, some heads of families have used them to make their celling roofs inside the huts,” he explained.

The DHO cautioned that every person feeling malaria should go testing first before doing a self-medication so that the problem is addressed accordingly.

“We have equally started to redistribute the rapid diagnostic testing kits to all health centers so that whoever comes complaining of malaria is tested,” he noted.

Some of the health facilities that have registered a high increase are Kalali and Acet health center II’s in Paicho and Odek Sub Counties respectively.

Other health center III’s are Pabwo in Bungatira Sub County, Ongako in Ongako Sub County and Bobi in Bobi Sub County.

Dr. Robert Amoko the in charge Omoro health sub district said apparently there’s an on and off supply of anti-malaria drugs due to high number affecting Acet, Lelabaro and Alokolum facilities.

Malaria in Gulu district had been suppressed for 10 years  by 50% becoming the second killer disease among the top ten diseases but the current rise in prevalence, health workers are worried that it might become the leading.