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Arua city health officer, inspectors, in-charges and TB focal persons during the CAST plus orientation. Photo by Morish Dramadri. By Morish Dramadri Arua city The little attention paid to nutrition level assessment among children under 5 years in the majority
Arua city health officer, inspectors, in-charges and TB focal persons during the CAST plus orientation. Photo by Morish Dramadri.
By Morish Dramadri
Arua city
The little attention paid to nutrition level assessment among children under 5 years in the majority of health facilities in Arua city is said to be a contributing factor to the city’s worrying malnutrition cases currently standing at 19% at Ayivuni health center III.
According to the data from the city health department, only two health facilities Novafinia and Ediofe health 3 paid attention to nutrition assessment for under five children with other facilities recording less than 50% assessment in the last financial. This was noted during the city leadership orientation on Integrated CAST PLUS campaign on Thursday.
Every year in the months of March and September, ministry of health with support from implementing partners heightens access to integrated Community Awareness, Screening, Testing (CAST) plus focusing on prevention and treatment of TB, HIV, Malaria, Malnutrition, communicable diseases, with screening and referral of pregnant and breastfeeding under 1 year for immunization to achieve the target of ending HIV and TB and other disease and conditions by 2030.
Graph showing level of nutrition assessment for under 5 children in Arua city health facilities.
Photo by Morish Dramadri
While presenting the health report before the city leadership, Adam Mikiel the city biostatistician disclosed that, “most of our facilities are not doing nutrition assessment its only Novafinia and Ediofe health center III that are doing screening for children under 5years, we expect in OPD all those children under five must be screened for nutrition status but the nutrition screening has been very low for all our facilities,” Adam unearthed.
Currently, the skyrocketing malnutrition case reported in Arua city among children under 5 years at Ayivuni health centre III has prompted an investigation by the surveillance team in at its epicenter of the former Ayivuni sub county and other bordering areas.
“Prioritize parish health service delivery model through the parish or the ward structures have integrated health camp there, why should couples be seen healthy when very many malnourished children are hidden in the houses? Are we checking homes as health workers and LC’s, what are we doing there?” Arua city principal health officer Pontius Apangu called on the different stakeholders to act to jointly address the matter.
Meanwhile Arua city town clerk David Kyansanku tasked the health workers to serve with humanity. “I want to call upon you for you in health it is a special calling, whatever you do, do it for humanity,” Kyansanku appealed.
Among other worrying disease cases in Arua city include malaria, Tuberculosis and HIV.