By BILKE MULENGA –
HEAD- Laboratory Network and Systems at the Zambia National Public Health Institution (ZNPHI) Kunda Musonda has called on the public to uphold high levels of hygiene to combat cholera.
Dr Musonda who is also Incident Commander Cholera Response for 2017 said a if any signs like a patient passing rice-watery stools, vomiting and dehydration within a short period of time, there was need to report such cases.
“Cholera is brought by the germ which found in water or fluid things.  The same germ can be found in cold food stuffs.So people should treat their drinking water with chlorine and heat their food stuffs before drinking or eating it as the measures of killing the germs,” he said.
Dr Musonda pointed out that treating drinking water with chlorine or boiling it were the appropriate ways of ensuring of having cleaner and safer water to drink.
He said after applying chlorine in water, people should wait for at least half an hour before start drinking the same water.
He said when people want to eat raw food such as apples, mangoes, guavas, and other fruits they were supposed to wash them thoroughly or even in chlorinated water.
“Apart from maintaining personal hygiene, people should always try to keep their surroundings clean. To throw garbage away from their homes to avoid a lot of flies near their food stuffs,” Dr Musonda explained.
He said at the health facility medical personnel know how to treat such cases and when the case is severe they put such patient to intravenous to ensure quick replacement of lost water.