KENYA – Kisumu County in Kenya has established a new raft of measures to curb malaria transmissions especially in expectant women.
The measures include giving treated mosquito nets to pregnant mothers along with giving them Intermittent Preventive Treatment of Malaria (IPTp).
IPTp is the administration of a curative dose of an effective anti-malarial drug to pregnant women whether infected with malaria or not which is initiated from the 2nd trimester and continuously done during the routine clinic visits up to the time of delivery.
In Kenya, malaria is a major threat to pregnant women especially in the lake region due to the two rainfall patterns annually which increases the mosquito vector population.
The County Government is also conducting surveillance on the rate of malaria infections as well as testing and treating malaria at hospitals in an effort to reduce malaria infection.
In addition, Kisumu has deployed trained midwives to test and refer pregnant women who are infected with malaria to various hospitals in the county for detailed treatment.
The county has initiated strategies towards managing the disease such as Malaria Case Management (MCM) for early diagnosis and treatment of malaria as well as Community Case Management of Malaria (CCMM).
The CCMM strategy involves health workers who provide the necessary outreach in getting to the households and capturing the malaria cases in the community alongside malaria in pregnancy test and treatment.
Additionally, researchers in the medical sector have suggested several drugs used to treat the life-threatening disease including quinine that is taken for seven days and has a bitter taste which is quite a challenge for the expecting mothers.
Kisumu County Director of Health Dr. Fredrick Oluoch affirmed that the National and County governments worked together to ensure that the vital measures are put in place to help reduce malaria cases in pregnant women.
Health Ministry renovates a hospital in Kisumu County
Meanwhile, the Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced a newly upgraded Lumumba Sub-County Level 4 Hospital in Kisumu County from a small 10-bed capacity to 150-bed capacity to expand access to healthcare provision in the area.
The County Administration in collaboration with Kisumu Urban Project supplied the hospital with assorted medical equipment worth 31 million (US$270,000) to provide the highest standard of care for the patients
The transformation and operationalization of the Level 4 facility seeks to address congesting in Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Teaching and Referral Hospital (JOOTRH) and Kisumu County Referral Hospital (KCRH).
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