Epidemic situations

Epidemic situations
Sometimes infectious diseases suddenly occur in a large number of people in a
community. This is called an “epidemic”. If such an incident happens, the health
worker or the responsible authority must be notified immediately. The instructions
given by the health workers or health authority must be followed.
Protection and control of communicable and
non-communicable diseases that commonly
occur in the region
There are certain communicable diseases such as TB of the lungs; influenza,
diarrhoea, malaria, dengue haemorrhagic fever, etc. that can spread rapidly and
greatly worsen health. If such a disease is detected, the person must take actions
to ensure that they will not spread the disease to their family members and others
in the community.
Certain non-communicable diseases such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension,
heart and blood vessel diseases, cancer, etc are of long duration and expensive to
treat. If a person has such a disease, then it is very important that he/she takes
good care. Neglect could lead to complications. Uncontrolled diabetes can give
rise to kidney failure, hypertension, infected wounds with the risk of losing a finger
or leg. The affected person could even become blind. However, this doesn’t mean
that he/she cannot live a normal life. In fact, if the disease is properly controlled,
the person can live a normal life. Anyone affected with a non-communicable
disease can definitely hope a normal lifestyle by following the prescribed steps
and restrictions to control the disease.
This part will discuss the steps needed to prevent and control communicable and
non-communicable diseases.
based on WHO