By Muhammad Amaan
The Kano State Centre for Disease Control (KNCDC) has engaged traditional rulers across the state to curb the diphtheria outbreak and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
The mobilisation came on the heels of a recent outbreak of diphtheria in some communities in Rano and the reported cases of casualties.
The Director-General of the centre, Professor Muhammad Adamu Abbas, made this known during a meeting with traditional leaders (District Heads) under the Kano Emirate Council in Kano.
He solicited the support of the traditional leaders to take the lead in sensitising their wards to vaccine uptake in order to curb the spread of diphtheria and other vaccine-preventable diseases.
The KNCDC boss, who highlighted the advantages of vaccines, urged the traditional institution to support efforts aimed at halting the spread of diphtheria through increased vaccine uptake and prompt reporting of suspected cases.
According to him, many of the diphtheria cases recorded in the state involved children who had not received routine immunisation, sought treatment from chemists or traditional healers, or were brought late to health facilities.
Prof. Abbas appealed to the traditional leaders to mobilise communities to embrace vaccination and encourage residents to seek immediate medical attention whenever symptoms of illness are noticed.
He also urged them to caution traditional medicine practitioners and barbers against attempting to treat diphtheria cases, stressing that suspected patients should be referred immediately to health facilities.
Responding, the Dankaden Kano, Dr Bashir Dankadai, assured KNCDC of the traditional institution’s commitment to supporting the campaign against diphtheria.
Dankadai said district heads would engage village heads, who would in turn mobilise ward heads to sensitise residents on vaccination and early presentation at health facilities.
He added that traditional healers, particularly traditional barbers, would be warned against interfering with diphtheria treatment or carrying out any form of traditional surgical intervention on affected persons.
He reaffirmed the readiness of the traditional leaders to work closely with KNCDC to curb the spread of the disease across the state.
The centre had earlier demanded the urgent supply of nine million doses of vaccines to curtail the spread of the infectious disease.
The Federal Ministry of Health had already deployed 500,000 doses of vaccines and a special task force to coordinate rapid surveillance and response efforts in Kano and Katsina states.
