- The KDHS 2022 shows Mandera, Samburu, Narok, Isiolo, Marsabit, Tana River and Wajir have a prevalence of more than six per cent
- This is despite the country making notable progress in reducing the burden
Image: FILE
The Ministry of Health is banking on Community Health Promoters to help reduce the burden of pneumonia in children in Asal counties.
Data shows counties in the Asal areas still have a high prevalence of pneumonia in children below the age of five years.
This is despite the country making notable progress in reducing the burden.
Pneumonia is a form of acute respiratory infection that affects the lungs, it is caused by infectious agents which include viruses, bacteria and fungi.
The CHPs are expected to play a vital role in educating the mothers on nutrition improvement, signs and symptoms of pneumonia and the need to seek care in health facilities.
Head of Newborn and Child Health at the Ministry of Health Janette Karimi said low nutrition levels in Asal counties have made children lack immunity to fight infections.
Most children in the Asal areas are either not exclusively breastfed or lack nutritious complimentary feeding after the breastfeeding.
“Those arid lands have lesser food security, less variety of the foods that they are eating and therefore the nutrition status might be lower,” Karimi said.
She said the disease can also be easily prevented through hand washing and good sanitation practices.
In Kenya, pneumonia causes between 8,000 and 10,000 annual childhood deaths representing about one in five of all child deaths.
Data from the Kenya Health Demographic Survey says Mandera, Samburu, Narok, Isiolo, Marsabit, Tana River and Wajir counties have a prevalence of more than six per cent.
Garissa, West Pokot and Baringo have a high burden of pneumonia among children. The ministry has attributed this to a number of factors hence the need for targeted interventions.
However, the counties with the high burden have scarcity of water hence hygiene and sanitation is lower in those areas compared to the other parts of the country.
Karimi said some women in these counties are unable to tell symptoms of pneumonia and make decisions to seek care on time due to low levels of education.
“Again they are vast areas. Medical facilities are quite a distance away. That is why we are going to rely on CHPs. We hope they will be able to bridge some of these gaps,” she said.
Karimi said they are working with agriculture counterparts to make people in Asal counties embrace farming alongside nomadism as an income generating activity.
“With this we will be able to deal with nutrition and bring the burden in the counties down,” she said.
Acting Health DG Patrick Amoth said pneumonia can be tackled by simple solutions such as breast feeding, immunisation, observing hand hygiene sanitation and preventing air pollution.
This is in addition to educating mothers on the danger signs to look for and the need to seek care on time.
“Behind the statistics, there are stories of innocence lost, dreams unfulfilled, and futures cut short. We must not allow these tragedies to persist,” he said.
Mariana Mutinda from the Kenya Paediatric Association said symptoms of pneumonia in children include cough, fever and difficulty in breathing.
“The child might be breathing faster than usual or have a noisy breathing (wheezing)," he said.
Other symptoms include a child who is not alert, might not be feeding well, or is not able to drink.
Those below six months might not be breast feeding well.