Plan fights new strain of meningitis in Burkina Faso
A Plan health advisor advising members of a community in Burkina Faso about meningitis
Plan is to the forefront of the battle against a new form of meningitis which is hitting children and young people in Burkina Faso especially hard and for which there is no known vaccine.
So far this year meningitis has claimed the lives of 718 people in Burkina Faso and half of those deaths are being blamed on the new strain of the disease.
The disease is at epidemic level in five districts and nine others are on high alert. The mortality rate is particularly high at 14% and 80% of patients are aged between two and 30.Life saving treatments
Plan Burkina Faso is supporting the Ministry of Health by funding antibiotics, other treatments and with use of laboratory and other equipment. Plan is also purchasing vaccines against the other strains of meningitis, which are also killing many people.
On a more local level, Plan’s five programme units in Burkina Faso are helping to treat patients. So far 5,118 people nationally have been treated for the disease.
Informing communities
As well as giving direct medical treatment, Plan is also broadcasting health messages on local radio stations. Plan’s health advisor in Burkina Faso, Dr Ismailou Kaba, said that these broadcasts contain key messages about the disease and are designed to encourage people to go to health centres for treatment or vaccination.
“Plan has reacted quickly to the meningitis outbreak and we will continue to work with the government" he said.
Find out more about Plan’s work in Burkina FasoLearn about Plan’s global health work.
