Malaria is endemic in Burundi. In the northern province of Kayanza, on the border with Rwanda, recent months of heavy rainfall have triggered a rise in the numbers of mosquitoes responsible for the spread of this deadly disease.
At the end of December, an increase in the number of sick people prompted health authorities to call on MSF to conduct an assessment. The diagnosis was clear: the incidence of malaria is alarmingly high. MSF is now reinforcing their response in the area.
MSF team in Gaharo assessing and treating malaria cases. Kayanza province, Burundi.
Photo by Jean-Michel van Laere
Since mid-January, three MSF medical teams have been running mobile clinics in six sites, in three districts affected - Kayanza, Gahombo and Musema. These teams diagnose patients on the spot with a rapid malaria test, provide treatment and refer severe cases to the hospital. So far, 2,000 patients have already been tested and 63 percent were positive for malaria. Over a quarter of these were children.
“Symptoms of the disease include high fever, body aches and headaches. In some patients, this can quickly evolve into severe malaria with convulsions, coma and possible death. That’s why treatment within the first 24 hours is so important, especially for children”, says Goddy Efula Bomana, MSF Emergency Coordinator in Burundi. “However, it’s quite remote here - some have to walk up to 10 kilometres just to get the simple test in their nearest health centre. For that reason, mobile clinics are the quickest way to reach people, and allow us to refer patients to the hospital.”
Distance is not the only barrier to accessing healthcare: cost is also an issue. Malaria treatment in clinics and health centres is not free for adults, so many people simply can't afford it. Poor families, who often lack prevention methods such as mosquito nets, are at higher risk of infection, which aggravates the problem of transmission.
In the meantime, the public hospital in Kayanza is overwhelmed, with over 100 children occupying a paediatric ward that usually has a capacity of 40. Following a request from the authorities, MSF will increase the hospital's capacity in the coming days, and there is some discussion of the provision of free malaria treatment. The mobile clinics teams will also be doubled, as will be the number of sites covered.
______________________________________________________
MSF has worked in Burundi since 1993. In addition to its Centre for Obstetrical Emergencies in Bujumbura Rural province, MSF responds to medical emergencies in the country, such as the nutritional crisis in 2009 that hit the province of Kirundo.