A design of a mobile health intervention for the prevention and treatment of Cholera in South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo
Itulelo Matiyabu Imaja, Patrick Ndayizigamiye, Manoj Sewak Maharaj · 2017
Every year, the province of South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is burdened by recurrent outbreaks of Cholera especially in the Fizi and Uvira regions. Although the root causes of the epidemic are the scarcity of clean water and quality hygienic latrines, human-induced malpractices are also contributing factors. Hence, providing clean water and hygienic latrines must be accompanied by education and awareness programs geared toward preventive measures against the epidemic. In addition, in order to curb the devastating effects of the epidemic, community health workers need to report the epidemic outbreaks in real time and provide timely access to treatment to those affected. This paper proposes a mobile-enabled intervention that will assist in educating and improving citizens' awareness of preventive measures against Cholera. In addition, the intervention includes a reporting feature that enables Community Health Workers (CHWs) and community members to report suspected Cholera-related cases. The intervention also supports access to treatment guidelines that may assist first responders.