Kitgum

Parents and children receiving treatment at the nodding treatment centres that were put in place by the Ministry of Health, say that the shortage of food and other basic amenities remain big problems that are forcing many victims into shunning the centres.

In an interview with Acholi Times, the LCV Chairperson for Kitgum district Mr Luka Nyeko noted that the care of the children recovering from the nodding disease is not adequate, and that their caretakers who are supposed to go to the fields to dig are left to wallow in conditions that are unacceptable.

 

“With this rainy season, people should be busy cultivating as farming is their only source of livelihood. There will be retardation of children who are also still on medication,” he said.

 

Only 600 children in Kitgum suffering from the nodding disease are attending these centres and there are many deaths in the communities but go unreported because they don’t reach this centres.

 

The Coordinator of the nodding diseases centres Dr Bernard Opar, however said that measures are in place to report death cases at the village level so that the government can record all deaths in the region.

 

“Some patients only stay at the centre for one week, as soon as the seizure has been stopped, they return home; but that means that they are more at risk” he said.

 

 He added that at the moment they are treating the prevalent cases adding that some cases have not been identified.

 

On food, Dr Opar says that food is being provided by the Office of the Prime Minister includes and includes 400 bags of maize flour, 200 bags of beans and 600 bags of fortified foods and each household will receive 4 kgs of maize flour and 2kgs of beans to last them two weeks.

The government’s food distribution was set up to help families that have been affected by the disease and can no long till their land since most times they are attending to their sick children.

 

The Nodding disease is suspected to have so far killed over 400 children and affected over 5,000 in northern Uganda.  In several villages, parents continue to tie or lock up their children indoors to prevent them from escaping from homes or inflicting harm unto themselves.