Cholera treatment center in South Sudan

“We know about Cholera, Meningitis, Malaria, Polio, small pox… They are the old diseases killing millions of people in last century. In many developed countries, people got vaccination and better health care, they are no longer untreatable. But here, within weeks I saw dozens of patents infected by the old diseases,” told by my friend Dr. ZHOU Jifang in the field. Let me talk about Cholera outbreak. For places where water is contaminated or sanitation provision is poor, they favour the outbreak. Cholera is an emergency: the first treatment facility must function within 24 hours. Cholera is highly contagious: patients must be isolated immediately without waiting for lab results. Cholera can cause as high as 20 to 50% mortality if case management is not adequate. I am in charge of setting up a 120-bed Cholera Treatment Center in Doro Camp in South Sudan. There are not without challenges. The waste water from the Center is highly infectious with vibrio cholerae. They have to be discharged with extreme care to avoid contamination. We are still working with the community leader to sort out the location of dumping site. The site should be isolated and not prone to flooding. Rainy season comes and it creates ponds. People love to swim in it under the burning sun. The fact is that some latrines are overflowed by the heavy rainfall and excreta mixes with the water. It is a perfect medium of transmitting diseases. We have to race with time. I hope the Center will never be used.