Kagera authorities appreciate govt interventions to control diseases
AUTHORITIES in Kagera Region have expressed gratitude to the government for allocating funds, experts and essential equipment that enabled the region to control various diseases including the deadly Ebola virus.
Kagera Regional Medical Officer (RMO), Dr Issessanda Kaniki, made the remarks on Thursday during a Regional Consultative Committee (RCC) meeting held in Bukoba Municipal Council.
“We thank President Samia Suluhu Hassan for allocating funds, experts and essential equipment that enabled the region to control various diseases including the deadly Ebola virus. The Bukoba Regional Referral hospital recently received a CT Scan machine which has greatly improved health delivery services,” he said.
Elaborating, he said the government recently allocated at least 288 health workers between June to December, this year, bringing the total number of the workforce under the Ministry of Health in the region to 2,661.
Dr Kaniki also revealed that the number of Specialist doctors at the Bukoba Regional Referral hospital now stood at 13 while health facilities in the region were 351.
He explained that the government is making efforts to control the deadly Ebola Viral Disease (EVD), that has been confirmed in a neighboring country.
“Due to its proximity, Kagera region is among high-risk areas. The Ministry has instructed health officers at regional and district council levels to intensify health awareness campaigns, closely monitor the disease, do professional examination and ensure the availability of necessary medical and preventive equipment at their respective areas,” he said.
Equally, he advised the public to take precautions against this disease including washing hands with clean water and soap, avoid touching the body or discharges of an Ebola patient and avoiding unnecessary movements especially visiting areas affected by this disease.
“Tanzania has, until now, not documented any case of Ebola. However, the country was not immune from the viral disease due to the possibility of cross-border movements from the affected countries. All the necessary logistics have been put in place to control the viral disease,” he said.
Kagera region shares borders with four East African Community (EAC) member states, namely Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda and Kenya across Lake Victoria.
Ebola Virus disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a rare but severe, often fatal illness in humans.
The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission.
