Pakistan Medical Association Warns People Against Possible Outbreak Of Water Borne Diseases

Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has warned people to take all precautionary measures against possible outbreak of water borne infection during the current monsoon spell in the country.

KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 7th Jul, 2018 ) :Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) has warned people to take all precautionary measures against possible outbreak of water borne infection during the current monsoon spell in the country.

Secretary General, Pakistan Medical Association (Centre), Dr.

S.M.Qaisar Sajjad here on Saturday said with higher chances of water contamination consequent to rain and mingling of waste water with the potable all measures are needed to ensure safe drinking water at every level.

Urging citizens to necessarily consume boiled water only or if possible mineral water, the PMA official said conditions as Typhoid, Hepatitis A&E, Cholera are increasingly registered in the country due to human consumption of contaminated water.

"The situation is extremely dangerous for our kids," said Dr.

Qaiser Sajjad mentioning that approximately, 250,000 children below 5 years, die every year owing to waterborne diseases.

As per available statistics, he said some 30,000 people across the country are registered to be suffering from diseases like Typhoid, Hepatitis A & E and Cholera.

Mentioning that the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health warning for Pakistan, alerting people against an ongoing outbreak of "extensively drug-resistant" typhoid fever that does not respond to most antibiotics, he said this must be ignored by the government as well as the people.

Mentioning that CDC has advised people to take extra care with regard to food and water consumption besides getting themselves vaccinated against typhoid, he said PMA is committed to realize its responsibility in this regard.

PMA was said to be actively engaged in educating people about importance of proper hand-washing, safe food and water consumption practices.

Advising people to avoid eating from bazaar or places with little consideration for hygiene or drinking water and beverages with ice of unknown purity, he said active efforts are also being made to persuade people about importance of administering typhoid vaccine.

"PMA is also trying its best to get incorporated anti-typhoid vaccine in the national immunization program so that it may be made available free of cost to people at all public health facilities," said Dr. S.M.Qaiser Sajjad.