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Thandeka Moyo, Health Reporter
THE Ministry of Health and Child Care will today embark on a weeklong vaccination programme against cholera which has claimed 49 lives in Harare and affected more than 10 000 Zimbabweans.

According to the Ministry, the vaccination, which will also cover typhoid that has claimed 13 lives, will run from today to Wednesday next week in Harare.

Responding to questions from Chronicle, the director of Epidemiology and Disease Control, Dr Portia Manangazira, said the vaccination will target people aged from one to 99 years.

“We received the vaccine on September 26 and we will start vaccinating from tomorrow until October 10. The programme will be run by the Ministry with support from the World Health Organisation, Unicef, MSF and the Harare City Council,” said Dr Manangazira.

She said the vaccination for cholera is targeted at Glen View, Glen Norah, Mbare, and Budiriro residents which were hardest hard when the water borne disease broke out on September 1.

“All our vaccines are all pre-qualified by the World Health Organisation, (WHO), procured by Unicef and checked for quality by the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe. All or vaccinators are trained in the correct handling of the vaccine in accordance with the cold chain, vaccination technique and also the surveillance and management of any adverse events following immuniSation,” said Dr Manangazira.

She said the Ministry had been recording a decrease in new cases from last week.

“Then we were reporting 400 cases or more daily, but as from last week we are reporting about 100 cases daily. We are achieving control but not yet out of the woods. Outbreak over will be when we have gone 14 continuous days without reporting a single case,” she said.

Dr Manangazira added that vaccines for both cholera and typhoid are deployed to halt the outbreak(s), and to preserve the failing antibiotics; but will not replace the basic requirements for adequate safe water and sanitation and personal hygiene.

Two cholera cases were confirmed in Bulawayo on Monday, both imported from the cholera epicentre in Harare.

One of the confirmed cases is that of the popular apostolic sect leader who died last week and a city man who was admitted to Thorngrove Infectious Hospital on Saturday.

Bishop Enock Mhambare from the Paul Mwazha-led church died at Thorngrove Hospital last Monday after he fell ill on his way back from Botswana.

He suffered from stomach aches, watery diarrhoea and was vomiting.

Bulawayo City Council Health Services director Dr Edwin Sibanda said only two cases out of 36 suspected cases had tested positive for cholera.

“We had an elderly man who was admitted and treated as a cholera patient but the results were not yet out when he died and at burial. The final result confirmed it was cholera,” said Dr Sibanda.

He said the new case was reported on Saturday. — @thamamoe