THE recent outbreak of gastroenteritis in parts of Region One (Barima/Waini), which has seen approximately 250 cases being recorded, is under control and there are adequate medical supplies to cope. This was reported, last Saturday, by the medex at Port  Kaituma Community Hospital, Ms. Edghilo Gill in an interview with the State media.
According to her, the number of affected persons in the region has been on the decline and the main focus is treating the water, which is used by most for domestic purposes.
She said they started to observe the incidence around February 10 and about February 27 they recognised that the numbers had increased and there was need for action.
Gill said they contacted the relevant authorities in Georgetown and the response was prompt, with a team flown in to conduct investigations, including collecting samples of the water.
She said they first observed the disease in persons from Sebai Village and then others from Canal Bank, Oronoque and Central Port Kaituma.

MAJOR CAUSES
Gill said the environment and the practices of the people are two of the major causes of the sickness and she referred to the improper disposal of garbage and pit latrines in close proximity to the riverside.
She said they are teaching people to move their toilets more inland and also sensitising them by going out into the communities and conducting meetings, telling the residents how to treat their water.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Chronicle spoke to two parents who were at the Port Kaituma Community Hospital with their children experiencing vomiting and diarrhoea.
One of them, Sandra Williams said her four-year-old daughter had just finished drinking tea when she told her that she was feeling upset and started to vomit and suffer diarrhoea shortly after.
The woman said she, immediately, took the girl to the hospital, where she was attended to promptly and given injections which included ‘gravol’.
Another parent, Bernie Moore had her one year 11 months old son and he, too, had shown similar symptoms since the previous night.
The mother said she received good service at the hospital where they gave her son medication, including gravol, too.
Speaking at the opening of the Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) branch at Port Kaituma, on Saturday, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds alluded to the gastroenteritis report and said it signals the need for improvement of water supply in the region.
He said there is, probably, the necessity for a water treatment plant in Region One, something that ought to be provided.