Dr Welile Shasha with a poorly constructed pit
latrine
In November 2008 there was a serious cholera outbreak in the
northern prov-inces of South Africa. By the end of the epidemic
there had been over 12,000 cases and 65 deaths.
At the request of the National Department of Health, HLSP sourced
and contracted a public health specialist, Dr Welile Shasha, to
work with local, national and international partners to respond to
the outbreak. Dr Shasha also trained health workers on how to treat
and manage cholera in health facilities and in the community.
By April 2009, new cases of cholera had declined to a trickle and
Dr Shasha turned his attention to the root causes of the problem:
poor water and sanitation services. Many of the sewerage plants in
rural areas are overburdened and are functioning poorly. In rural
settlements people have to rely on poorly constructed pit latrines
that allow flies to spread the disease.
Dr Shasha is working closely with the Mpumalanga Department of
Health to document and find solutions to these problems.
Watch the film: Beating Cholera
