The hospital in Batangafo – a town of 31,000 people, including 22,000 displaced from elsewhere in the Central African Republic– is bustling with activity. While a particular focus has been placed on infection prevention and control measures to identify and isolate people with suspected cases of COVID-19, another deadly disease has a much heavier impact on the lives of people living here.
September is the rainy season, when malaria becomes more deadly than ever in the Central African Republic each year. It is the leading cause of death for children under five in the country. During periods when malaria transmission is high, eight out of ten pediatrics consultations in the hospital supported by Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders in Batangafo are due to complications from malaria, including anemia and dehydration. Since the beginning of the year, MSF treated 39,631 malaria cases in Batangafo, compared to 23,642 in the same period last year. 1,074 children under five have been admitted to the hospital because of malaria this year. 28 of them did not survive.
“Because he caught malaria, my son is very weak, and the doctors said he is anemic. They are trying to stabilise his condition to avoid more complications that could be fatal. I am so afraid to lose him,” says Chancella Gbtoum, mother of five year old Yakota Abbias. Chancella and her younger child have both received antimalarial medication from MSF as a preventative measure. “I gave my other, 11-months-old child the medication against malaria that we received from MSF,” she says. ¨I took it too. I know that this time, we will not get sick.”
To mitigate the impact of this deadly disease and protect the community, MSF launched a targeted campaign of preventative treatment, also known as a mass drug administration for malaria, at the beginning of the rainy season. In order to reach a maximum number of people and to make sure that the population understood the importance of this initiative, the campaign was run in three stages.
A member of the MSF team hands out preventative treatment for malaria to the residents of Batangafo, CAR. [© Lorène Giorgis/MSF]
First, MSF raised awareness of the campaign with the help of community leaders and by broadcasting spots on the local radio. Next, the team went door-to-door to distribute the preventative treatment. And finally they returned to each household to check if people had taken the treatment and to identify any side effects.
By taking the medication to people in their own homes, they avoided the risk of crowds gathering at distribution sites and potentially spreading COVID-19. The MSF teams also adopted protective measures such as wearing masks and keeping a safe distance between individuals.
The rise in patients with malaria is not limited to this region near the border with Chad, but is happening countrywide.
"During the rainy season, malaria ravages communities that have limited access to healthcare and preventive measures. Every year, we are seeing a spike of malaria cases across MSF´s projects in the Central African Republic. In 2019, we treated 578,072 cases of malaria throughout the country." says Carmen Terradillos, MSF´s medical coordinator. " Receiving effective malaria treatments remains inadequate in a country that has seen years of conflict and neglect. Impregnated mosquito nets are expensive and out of reach for many. The mass drug administration is an effective way to prevent complications from malaria."
Residents of Batangafo were eager to protect themselves and their family members from a disease which has already killed many children in their community
¨I am pregnant and I do not want to get malaria. It is dangerous for my future child,” says Félice.” I know I am more vulnerable and I need to take this treatment.”
In the first round of the campaign, MSF provided preventative treatment to a total of 32,670 people, including 6,531 children and 135 pregnant women. The next round of the campaign is scheduled for the end of September.