Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) have decided to intensify surveillance at each household in low-lying pocket areas.
The spread of enteric diseases like diarrhoea and dermatitis in Kolkata as an aftermath of the flood-like situation in many parts of the city, civic authorities are going all out in their efforts to check their rise.
Beliaghata ID hospital reported around 100 patients on an average on daily basis since August 3 after the very heavy rainfall was recorded and subsided. 80% patients are Kolkata residents and only 20% are getting admitted from neighbouring districts.
The numbers getting admitted are causing concern for KMC’s health department officials monitoring the outbreak in the city. According to senior KMC doctors, in the wake of water-logging, there is always the possibility of stored water being contaminated coupled with personal hygiene resulting in episodes of acute diarrhoeal diseases.
“It is true Beliaghata ID hospital is getting a steady flow of patients with complaints of diarrhoea but the figure is not yet alarming to officially declare an outbreak. Only 41 patients are admitted as on date and a total of 1,100 patients have been treated in the last 10 days,” Atin Ghosh, member, mayor-in-council (health), said. KMC collected over 250 samples from different points in the city and in few places the reports were not satisfactory, denoting contamination in water.
Field workers are visiting door to door in affected wards and distributing anti-diarrhoeal drugs and ORS, and halogen tablets to disinfect drinking water. There is no shortage of anti-diarrhoeal drugs or ORS or halogen tablets. There is also no dearth of logistics support, sources said.
“We have visited 51,936 houses in 144 wards in Kolkata and have opened several health camps and our field workers have identified 1,100 patients suffering from diarrhoea and few patients suffering from dermatitis,” the MMiC (health) said.
KMC has cancelled holidays of health staffs of wards 1, 108, 109, 111 to 114, which are vulnerable areas.
Special teams have been formed to make visits at every doorstep in Tangra, Tiljala and Topsia that reports most diarrhoea cases round the year.
“In these wards, we would keep our ward health units open all the seven days for extra hours to distribute ORS, halogen tablets and derma ointments. We are also treating common cough and cold and viral fevers,” Ghosh said.
KMC is asking all Kolkatans to drink water only after boiling it.
