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Dr Phophi Ramathuba and her entourage listen to patients at Donald Fraser Hospital.

Increase in malaria cases

Date: 06 May 2017 By: Elmon Tshikhudo

The prevalence of malaria in Limpopo has put the Limpopo Department of Health on high alert.

On Tuesday, the MEC for Health, Dr Phophi Ramathuba, visited the Donald Fraser and Malamulele hospitals as part of her department's continued effort to respond rapidly to malaria cases in the province.

This follows an outbreak of malaria in the district, with many residents suffering from the disease admitted at local hospitals.

During the visit, Ramathuba also met senior officials of the department in the district, visited patients and interacted with nurses at the two hospitals. Speaking during her visit to Donald Fraser Hospital, Ramathuba said there was an increase in transmissions in the province from 2016, which had the lowest infections in 20 years.

She said they had admitted 620 patients at the province's hospitals this year. According to her, the attributing factors in the increase are the heavy rainfall and floods and the refusal by residents to welcome the fumigation teams in their homes.

According to her, malaria transmission in the province is most prevalent between the months of October to middle April, but this year that has continued with a high number of cases reported over the past week from the north-eastern parts of the province.

“The increased numbers of cases were reported from Siloam, Donald Fraser, Malamulele and Nkhensani hospitals. Our department has activated teams in all these facilities to deal with this increased number of cases. Supplies to treat malaria cases are currently being distributed to the facilities,” she said. She added that supplies of medicine had been centralised at hospitals, but that they would organise mobile stations at far-flung villages where villagers could be treated.

According to her, villagers still attach a negative stigma to DDT that is used for fumigation. “Our department cares for its people and we cannot give our people medication that could harm them. We appreciate the fact that community members are also responding to our call to report to their closest health facility if they experience malaria symptoms,” she said.

A patient at the hospital told her that many people had fallen ill because they did not want health officials to fumigate their homes. She asked the MEC to supply mosquito nets to residents affected by the disease.

 
 
 

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Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

 
 

More photos... 

MEC Ramathuba  (right) is being briefed by the head of the Department of Health in Vhembe, Mr Ndwamato Sirwali (second from left).

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