With the floodwaters receding, many waterborne diseases including diarrhoea and skin disorders have started spreading sporadically among flood victims, compounding the suffering of the affected people in the northern districts.
Each day, over a thousand people are being affected with different types of diseases including cases of diarrhoea, dysentery, eye diseases, eczema, itching, skin infection, fever, pneumonia and other waterborne ailments, sources said.
The situation is worsening due to an acute shortage of safe drinking water and proper sanitation in the flood-hit regions where the administration is hardly providing medical treatment as road communication has been snapped in many rural areas.
According the Directorate General of Health Services, some 1482 flood victims have been affected by such diseases in the flood-hit districts on Saturday alone.
Of them, 663 people were affected with diarrhoea, 153 with respiration problem, 87 with skin diseases, 43 with eye pain and 508 with other diseases while two drowned in floodwaters on Saturday, DGHS Health Emergency Operations Center and Control Room said.
On Friday, some 1648 people were affected with different diseases across the country. Of them, 711 were diagnosed with diarrhoea, 167 with respiration problem, 89 with skin diseases, 44 with eye pain and 608 with other diseases.
The number of fresh patients stood at 1732 on Thursday. Of them, 829 were affected with diarrhoea, 157 with respiration problem, 67 with skin disorders, 31 with eye disease and 611 with other diseases, DGHS sources said.
“DGHS authorities have formed 2,885 medical teams to treat the affected people in 32 flood-hit districts,” said Dr Imrul, the in-charge of Health Emergency Operations Center and Control Room.
“We have distributed 1,771,700 pieces water purifying pills, 3,068,156 packs of Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS), 123,855 intravenous (IV) fluids and 2861 anti-venoms vaccines in Rajshahi, Rangpur, Mymensing, Sylhet and Dhaka divisions,” he said.
Besides, some 17 community clinics in Gaibandha and nine in Kurigram districts have been flooded while six clinics have been damaged because of the monsoon flood in Lalmonirhat, DGHS source said.
According to Civil Surgeon’s Office in Lalmonirhat, some 362 diarrhoea patients and 45 pneumonia patients including another 339 with other diseases have taken treatments in last 14 days while three persons including a women and a child have drowned in Dharla River while going for safe shelter.
Shah Jamal, a resident of Kulaghat union in Sadar upazila, said : “Around 50 families have been living on an embankment for last few days. Many of them including my daughter are suffering from fever and diarrhoea as there is no supply of safe potable water and proper sanitation.”
“We have heard governments are providing relief and medicine but we are yet to see any medical team here,” he alleged.
But, Lalmonirhat District Civil Surgeon Dr Amiruzzaman said they formed 54 medical teams for the flood victims in the district.
In Dinajpur district, 727 people have been affected with diarrhoea since August 12.
Diarrhoea patients are increasing every day in Dinajpur Sadar Hospital and M Abdur Rahim Medical College Hospital while a number of children and elderly people were admitted to different hospitals due to pneumonia, skin disorder and other diseases.
According to Dinajpur District Civil Surgeon Dr Mawla Baksh said some 170 medical teams, each consisting five members including a medical assistant, have been formed for providing medical support in 102 unions under 13 flood-hit upazilas in the district.
“There is no such reason to get worried over the increasing number of patients as it is quite normal in such a situation after floods. And, we have enough medicine like cyprosin syrup, tetracycline, orsaline and water purifying tablets in stock,” he said.
Our correspondents from Lalmonirhat and Dinajpur have contributed to this report.
