29 June 2017

By Muhammad Makki

RIYADH – The Ministry of Health has said it has taken several precautionary measures to prevent the spread of cholera in the Kingdom from neighboring countries.

So far no cholera cases have been registered in Saudi Arabia.

Ministry of Health spokesman Mishal Al-Rubaian said the measures aim at monitoring and diagnosing suspected cases as well as implementing both preventive and curative measures.

The measures include monitoring the situation in affected countries through official bodies there and the World Health Organization (WHO) on a daily basis, spreading awareness among health workers and society in general and boosting the mechanism for monitoring.

Al-Rubaian added that the ministry is coordinating with the pertinent authorities to monitor the level of environmental protection in border areas and carry out a health awareness campaign. The Command and Control Center should be informed immediately on all suspicious cases, he said.

A package of preventive measures ought to be implemented on any suspicious cases and anyone mingling with them, he added.

Committees from the Ministry of Health in coordination with the joint forces at the southern border held several periodic meetings with local authorities to draw up the appropriate plans and take all necessary preventive measures. The objective is also to monitor the situation on the ground in all provinces and governorates in the southern border region.

The Ministry of Health has launched an awareness campaign against cholera in villages, towns and cities in the southern part of the Kingdom after the worst outbreak of the disease in neighboring Yemen in recent years.

The ministry is distributing guidance leaflets through all means of communication, including social media, in order to inform the public on the symptoms of the disease and how to prevent it.

The WHO has warned the states neighboring the countries with cholera outbreaks and asked them to boost their vigilance against cross-border infections. It stressed that monitoring ought to be bolstered in order to update data for evaluating the hazards of possible outbreaks and to help in its early detection.

© The Saudi Gazette 2017