Osun Government says there are no confirmed cases of cholera outbreak in the state.
This was disclosed by the Director of Public Health in the state Ministry of Health, Dr Akeem Bello, in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Osogbo.
Bello, however, said that all the primary healthcare centres in the state had been put on alert in case of any outbreak of the disease.
“Presently, we have yet to record any outbreak of cholera in the state,” he said.
The director, however, stated that since last week when news about the outbreak of the disease had filtered in from Lagos, all the primary healthcare centres across the state had been put on standby in case of any outbreak.
“We are on top of the situation, and government is doing everything possible to ensure that in case of any outbreak, we can quickly curtail it,” he added.
Bello also said that an Emergency Operation Centre on cholera would be activated to prevent the spread of the disease in schools in case of an outbreak.
He also said that a surveillance team from the epidemiology department would be monitoring the situation in the state to contain the spread or outbreak of the disease.
“An emergency operation centre (EOC) will be activated any moment from now.
“Officials from the Ministry of Education and the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB) are members of the EOC and are well-informed about the cholera outbreak in Lagos,” he stated.
Bello also said that the government had placed jingles in some radio stations to sensitise residents of the state on the causes and prevention of cholera.
NAN reports that cholera is a highly infectious disease caused by vibrio cholera, characterised by diarrhoea, vomiting, dehydration, abdominal cramps and fever. NAN also reports that if left untreated, cholera can lead to severe dehydration, shock and even death within hours.
However, prompt treatment with oral rehydration therapy (ORT) or intravenous fluids can effectively manage the disease. Cholera is typically spread through contaminated food, water, poor sanitation and hygiene as well as close contact with infected individuals.
It can be prevented by proper hand washing, safe drinking water, proper food handling and storage and avoiding close contact with infected individuals, among others.