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The Minister of Health launches Lwala hospital as a sleeping sickness treatment centre
The Minister of Health Dr. Stephen Malinga has officially launched Lwala hospital in Kaberamaido district as a treatment centre for trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness).
Dr. Malinga launched the centre on Thursday 21st April, 2010 during a stakeholders meeting on sleeping sickness at Lwala hospital.
Lwala hospital has since 2004, when the sleeping sickness epidemic broke out in Kaberamaido and Dokolo districts served as a treatment centre for the patients.
The Minister observed that the most important action to take against the disease is prevention right at community level. He appealed to the Veterinary Officers and Entomologists to take the lead as professionals in prevention of the disease.
Minister Malinga also challenged the leaders to sensitise the people on the importance of having their animals tested and treated. He urged the people not to be totally dependent on government to provide drugs for spraying their animals but that they should learn to spend money to spray their own animals. He said that in other parts of the country, farmers fully meet the costs of treating their animals.
The Minister of State for Animal Industry and Fisheries, Dr. Bright Rwamirama emphasized that consistent spraying of animals can sustainably eradicate sleeping sickness. He urged the communities to always present their animals for screening or treatment when called upon. He said that government through the Ministry of Agriculture has planned to equip the Tsetse affected regions with diagnostic equipment.
In a report presented by Dr. Andrew Edielu, the Lwala hospital Superintendent and Regional Coordinator of sleeping sickness, the first case of sleeping sickness was documented in 2004 and since then, 551 cases have been treated at Lwala hospital. He said that out of the 551 treated, 35 cases died.
Dr. Edielu noted that up to 70 percent of the patients seek treatment when the disease is at the late stage.
The meeting was attended by stakeholders form Kaberamaido and Dokolo districts, ministry of health, and Makerere university among others.
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