Agencies meet to assess disease outbreak plan |27 February 2013

They included people from the Fire and Rescue Services Agency, Police department, Divisions of Risk and Disaster Management, department of finance, the United Nations Development Programme, and the department of environment.

Following the recent flooding in various parts of Mahé, the Ministry of Health through its surveillance picked up three new disease outbreaks, namely dengue, hand, foot and mouth disease, and gastroenteritis.

The ministry said dengue is the most serious in terms of damage it can cause and in terms of difficulty to control.

During the meeting, there were presentations by three representatives from the Ministry of Health, who each explained a specific part of their ministry’s role in the disaster response.
Dr Jude Gédéon said that in the face of the three epidemics all agencies should come together to give a helping hand.

Dr Jastin Bibi spoke about the local situation, where he said there are 70 suspected cases of dengue, around 400 households affected, and 32 families displaced, with La Digue being the most affected area.

Dr Meggy Louange gave a presentation about the response the ministry has mounted so far, which includes outreach programme for the residents affected, door-to-door visits, giving advice, working with the Ministry of Education to close affected schools and many more measures. As for La Digue, they dealt with the high infestation of mosquitoes that had propagated in the stagnant water left behind after flooding took place.

A representative from the World Health Organisation gave an outline of the plan of the response with the possible cost they could bring.

He outlined some of the measures that could be taken to deal with the disaster and its aftermath, as well as some possible expenses which one expects could be incurred on the response plan.

The meeting took place in the presence of the Minister for Environment and Energy Professor Rolph Payet, the Minister for Land Use and Housing Christian Lionnet, several principal secretaries, and other government officials. Also present were representatives of the World Health Organisation and the World Bank.

Addressing those present, Minister Payet said for the best results all stakeholders would have to work together.

“We need to have deadlines and targets, and also a team who measures the effectiveness of the activities we do,” he said.