Kala-azar outbreak in Wajir: Mobile laboratories deployed as death toll surpasses 20
The statement further noted that the MoH has deployed two mobile laboratories as part of an intervention to enhance early detection and treatment of the disease.
A response team from the county and national Ministry of Health, equipped with mobile laboratories for early diagnosis, has been dispatched to the worst-hit areas as the death toll from the Kala-azar outbreak in Wajir County surpasses 20.
In a statement, the Wajir County government said that, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MoH), it has intensified efforts to contain the surge in Kala-azar cases, which have so far claimed more than 20 lives.
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The statement further noted that the MoH has deployed two mobile laboratories as part of an intervention to enhance early detection and treatment of the disease.
According to the statement, Emphana Irura, an Assistant Director of Medical Services and an epidemiologist, will lead the epidemic preparedness and response team. This team will use the mobile laboratories in the worst-affected areas of the Eldas and Wajir West sub-counties.
Members of the public have been urged to seek early diagnosis and treatment.
“The Department of Health is urging residents in high-risk areas to seek early diagnosis and treatment while intensifying vector control measures to curb the spread of the disease,” the statement read.
Last week, health officials were deployed to Eldas and Wajir West for a 10-day fumigation and spraying exercise targeting sandflies to contain the Kala-azar outbreak.
Mohamed Hassan Maalim, the Wajir County Director for Public Health, stated that 6,000 households were targeted in the exercise. Members of the public were also educated on the signs and symptoms of the disease, modes of transmission, incubation period, and preventive measures by the trained teams conducting the exercise.
The Wajir County Director of Medical Services, Hassan Abass Ahmed, reported that the outbreak has infected more than 500 people since September 2024, overwhelming health facilities in Eldas, Giriftu in Wajir West, and Wajir Referral Hospital.
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