Bangladesh cannot expect end of diarrhoea in near future, icddr,b scientist says

The head of diarrhoeal diseases unit of the icddr,b Hospital, Dr Azharul Islam Khan, does not see an end to this water-borne illness in near future.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 17 April 2016, 03:25 PM
Updated : 17 April 2016, 07:14 PM

“We have to learn how to live with diarrhoea for the next 25 to 30 years,” he told bdnews24.com on Sunday, as the media started reporting that the incidence of diarrhoea was increasing with the mercury rising.

Dr Khan said they were getting between 450 and 500 patients each day in the last two weeks, “but this is still much lower than the last year’s figure during this period”.

“Even the time has not come to compare it with the last year’s trend,” he said.

Despite economic progress, diarrhoea has remained a prevalent disease in Bangladesh. It is directly related to water and sanitation.

“We have to change the whole infrastructure which is not a matter of a day or two,” said Dr Khan, “so it’ll take time to end diarrhoea.”

“We cannot drink tap water directly. Sanitary latrine still is a problem. We all do not practice hygiene, do not wash hands properly. Many of us eat street food. These all can cause diarrhoea.”

Dr Khan said they did not find the quality of WASA water “bad”, but the quantity was “not sufficient” during the summer.

In some places, sewerage supply mixed with water supply due to illegal connections.

“So unless we can stop drinking tap water directly, diarrhoea will remain. We have to learn how to check it so that people do not die.

“We have to learn when to take oral saline, when to go to hospital and how to maintain hygiene,” he told bdnews24.com.