Health Minister Warns of the Risk of Communicable Diseases after the Disaster in Sumatra

JAKARTA - Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin reminded of the increased risk of infectious diseases in the midst of handling and recovery after natural disasters in several areas of Sumatra. The warning was delivered following the discovery of a number of cases of infectious diseases in flood-affected and landslide locations.

"What we see is a contagious disease that we observe is measles, tuberculosis which is always there. But we also found leptospirosis," said Budi, Wednesday, January 7.

According to Budi, of the number of diseases, measles is the most worrying because the transmission rate is very fast and is fatal, especially for children if it is not immediately treated.

"What we are most worried about is measles, because it is very fast to spread and it can be fatal to children if it is too late," he said.

To prevent wider spread, Budi said the Ministry of Health had deployed medical teams to carry out special immunizations in areas that had been identified as having cases of infectious diseases and were considered vulnerable to transmission.

On the same occasion, Budi also responded to public concerns regarding the recent issue of superflu. He emphasized that until now there have been no reports showing that refugees or people affected by disasters in Sumatra are infected with this type of flu.

"There have been no reports of superflu in refugees or flood-affected communities. This is the same as the common flu, not like Covid-19 before, especially the deadly Delta variant," concluded Budi.

The Ministry of Health, he continued, will continue to monitor the health conditions in the disaster-affected areas and ensure that prevention efforts and health services run optimally.