Health Cabinet Secretary Susan Nakhumicha on Saturday, April 15, revealed that there was a countrywide diarrhoea outbreak.
The CS who was speaking during a familiarisation engagement with the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Health explained that the government was concerned by rising cases of diarrhoea across the country.
Nakhumicha assured the public that the government had put preventive measures to tame the outbreak.
According to the Health Ministry, the outbreak started in Garissa County and quickly spread nationwide.
“The outbreak is not only in Garissa but it is now across the country but we have the situation under control.
“As you know, the Kenya Kwanza manifesto focuses on moving from curative to preventive and promotive health services,” she told the Health Committee.
According to the CS, preventive and promotive services is where the focus is on hygiene and sanitation.
She revealed that poor hygiene was playing a key role in the outbreak and how the government would tackle this, she explained, “We are ensuring that health and sanitation standards are met.”
The diarrhoea outbreak was revealed days after the government identified the disease that led to the closure of Mukumu Girls High School.
The Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) on Wednesday, April 5 revealed that students at Mukumu suffered from a double infection of gastroenteritis and amoeba.
On Friday, April 14, the Ministry of Health further revealed that it was caused by the consumption of contaminated water.
"We wish to inform the general public that this disease is likely a mixture of E. coli and Salmonella typhi which usually occurs if water sources are contaminated with these micro-organisms,” a statement from Acting Director of Health Services Patrick Amoth stated then.
Nakhumicha revealed that this could have been prevented through proper sanitation.
“In the schools that are experiencing health issues, if only proper sanitation, proper hygiene and food handling and storage, that could prevent such outbreaks,” she noted.
