Health workers gear up for clean-up drive in Ernakulam

Caution against entering waterlogged areas without wearing protective gear

A doctor examines persons staying at a relief camp in Ernakulam.

With the Periyar overflowing and flooding houses on its banks, the Health authorities are gearing up for a major clean-up drive when the water recedes. There has been a let-up in the surge of water, but many people have not left the relief camps yet.

Doctors in the Health Services are monitoring the health of people housed in the camps. “So far, there is nothing much to worry about. People in the camps are well looked after by the Health team. There were only a few fever cases here and there,” said District Medical Officer N.K. Kuttappan. He added that major efforts were on to keep water-borne diseases at bay.

Maintaining hygiene

It is easy for water-borne diseases to spread in such relief camps, but inmates have been made aware of the dos and don’ts of maintaining hygiene. People have also been told about sanitation activities that need to be taken up before moving into houses that were flooded.

Dr. Kuttappan said many voluntary organisations also had taken up cleaning activities. It was important that the Health department to get such support, he added. Even though the heavy rush of water would not let vectors such as mosquitoes to breed, there were other communicable diseases that needed precaution, he said.

People have been cautioned against entering waterlogged areas without wearing protective gear. The medical officers have been advised to provide prophylactic doses of doxycycline if required, to keep leptospirosis away. Waterlogging in areas where waste food has been strewn on streets is a condition conducive to leptospirosis bacteria getting transmitted to humans if they wade through the water without protective gear.