Gov’t urged to provide adequate public toilet facility towards Cholera prevention

The solution to ending recurrence of Cholera outbreak in the country every year will require maximum effort on part of the government to help provide improved public toilet facility across every nook and cranny of the country.

This is a plea from a concerned women group in the country to government in an attempt to proffer a solution to end the epidemic.

Cholera, an acute enteric infection caused by the ingestion of bacterium vibrio cholerae present in faecally contaminated water or food still remains a major public health challenge to Ghanaians despite every effort by Government, Civil Society Organizations including other stakeholders in the health sector to curb the menace. 

The disease was first reported in Ghana in 1970 but since that time major epidemics continue to occur with shorter remission periods. 

Additionally, almost every year cholera epidemics are reported in the country due to a number of factors including poor personal hygiene (low soap utilization, poor hand washing practices), poor food hygiene, recurrent floods leading to contamination of domestic water sources, poor liquid wastes disposal systems, open defecation, over-populated communities(slums) characterized by poor sanitation and unsafe drinking water. 

But brainstorming on how to deal with the issue at a forum held in Accra to avert its recurrence in the future,  some stakeholders in the health sector bemoaned lack of adequate public toilet with proper hand washing facility is a barrier to averting the epidemic. 

They have therefore called on government to come to the aid of Ghanaians to help provide an improved public toilet facility at every nook and cranny of the country as a way to end the outbreak of Cholera in the country.

It was a ‘Health Promotion Monthly Theme on Cholera prevention’, a program  initiated by Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the Ministry of Health (MOH) in collaboration with other key stakeholders in the health sector to brief media practitioners and other organized groups on cholera programmes.

 The Ministry of Health and the GHS has set aside as the month of January as Cholera Prevention Month hence the need for organizing the forum.  This year’s celebration on the theme “Cleanliness, a key to Cholera Prevention; Act now for a good life” witnessed the presentation on the overview of Cholera situation in Ghana in addition to discussion on Meningitis. 

Dr. Emmanuel Dzotsi, Senior public health specialist at GHS who facilitated the presentation charged all stakeholders to join hands to play effective role in the fight against Cholera and Meningitis prevention in the country. 

In attendance were some concerned women groups in the health sector, chiefs,queens mothers and traditional authorities, Civil Society Groups and other key stakeholders. 

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