Fighting diseases: Preventative measures taken to beat malaria

Over 50,000 mosquito nets distributed in Kurram Agency

PARACHINAR: In a bid to prevent malaria and other water-borne diseases from spreading in the fast-approaching monsoon season, Kurram Agency’s health officials have taken steps such as spraying and distributing mosquito nets.

“We have distributed over 50,000 mosquito nets all over Kurram Agency and sprayed almost all urban and residential areas,” said Dr Moeen Begum, agency surgeon, while talking to the media. Recent reports revealed malaria was a serious threat in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the adjoining Federally Administered Tribal Areas as compared to the last couple of years. Official data confirmed over 86,000 people in K-P alone have been affected by malaria. Similar data was not available for Fata.

However, the agency surgeon said, “At the moment there is no presence of malaria or other water-borne diseases in the [Kurram Agency] area.”

Health officials assured they visited all households and all of them had mosquito nets to prevent the disease from spreading. The agency surgeon said besides spraying streets and houses, all offices of government organisations, barracks of armed and other security forces, and the cantonment area were sprayed.  Check posts of security personnel were also sprayed.

Moeen Begum added such precautionary measures were not only meant to prevent malaria but also other diseases that spread in the monsoon season.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 5^th, 2015.