Kantarawaddy Times — Karenni State
Internally displaced persons (IDPs) and local residents in the Nan Phe village tract, located on the border of Bawlakhe and Phruso townships, Karenni State, are experiencing a high rate of malaria infections, according to health workers in the area.
At Naung Lon IDP camp in the Nan Phe village tract, 130 people were tested for malaria during the second week of June, and 85 of them tested positive for the disease.
“There are a lot of malaria cases — out of around 130 people tested at Naung Lon, 85 came back positive,” said a health worker.
In addition to the general population, a number of students attending the IDP camp’s school have also been affected by malaria, with case numbers rising this month, sources said.
Health workers noted that mobile health outreach services have so far only been provided at Naung Lon IDP camp, and that visits to other locations are still needed.
In the Nan Phe and Taw Khu areas, road conditions during the rainy season make it difficult to reach hospitals or clinics, so emergency patients are being carried by hand by responsible community members.
“We carried the patient by hand to where the car could reach, and arrived in Daw La Saw past midnight. From there, we sent them on to the hospital, and they arrived at around 3:30 in the morning,” said a health worker.
Some IDP camps also lack their own medical clinics, leaving residents to face ongoing medicine shortages. In addition to malaria, seasonal influenza cases have also been on the rise, sources said.
Currently, mobile health teams are testing feverish patients for malaria, providing health education, and working to prevent further transmission of the disease.
The Nan Phe village tract includes the Naung Lon, Wei Kya Khaw, and Ta Gay Leh IDP camps, with a combined population of more than 1,000 people.
Since last May, malaria outbreaks have also been reported in villages and IDP camps across Phruso, Shadaw, Demoso, and Loikaw townships in Karenni State, with Plasmodium Vivax (P.V.) identified as the predominant strain.
