Plans need funding from the beginning, not when outbreak occurs

EKANTIPUR.COM by Manish Gautam and Pranaya SJB Rana      April 20, 2015
 
Nepal -- More than two weeks later, the mystery disease in Jajarkot has finally been identified as swine flu. With 24 people dead and thousands infected in a number of remote VDCs in Jajarkot, the disease has made national headlines. Yet, many have criticised the government for its lackluster response to the outbreak.

A team led by Health Minister Khaganath Adhikari visited the outbreak sites only after a dozen people had died. The team returned with inadequate samples for testing, prolonging the diagnosis period. Since then, a medical team of roughly 40 medical personnel from the Epidemiology and Disease Control Division (EDCD), the World Health Organisation, and the Nepal Army have been deployed to the outbreak sites.

Yet, there is little sign of the disease abating. Manish Gautam and Pranaya SJB Rana spoke to Dr Baburam Marasini , the harried director of the EDCD, on the state’s response to the outbreak, the EDCD’s complaints of a lack of funding, and the state’s preparedness for such epidemics.

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http://www.ekantipur.com/2015/04/20/interview/plans-need-funding-from-the-beginning-not-when-outbreak-occurs/404287.html