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Abdulaziz Dino Gidreta
Due to lack of health and sanitation education, the people are subject to other diseases
such as trachoma, typhoid and typhus. Trachoma, a contagious bacterial infection that
affects eyes and caused by lack of access to latrines and an overall poor sanitation, has
already become the challenging disease to hundreds of residents. The people lack the ini-
tiation to prevent or handle the disease at early stage. By its nature, trachoma is a disease
that needs early intervention (Melese, 2003); or else, it becomes too challenging to cure
as it develops. There are hundreds of victims, failed to cure. The victims who attempted
to eliminate it through operation have been left with visible wound, at a cost of facial pret-
tiness. In Ethiopia, the most common causes of blindness that have been reported are
trachoma, cataract, glaucoma, malnutrition, and infections (Melese, 2003: 677).
Due to lack of proper awareness rural community members also become subject to
Typhoid which commonly develops into Typhus. They do not meet the required daily
amount of food. And if they have that, it is not with quality and variety. And most com-
munity members do not tend to be cautious about washing of hands ahead of meals.
Farmers in particular can be found very inconsiderate about that. And commonly, this
harmful habit transfers to children, entire family and villagers. For most part, the common
water that residents consume is unclean, and the one they drink is unsafe. Even some-
times, children may tend to drink a given cup of water watching some sorts of ‘objects’
with the likelihood to be insects, alive deep inside the cups. Though most of the residents
seem adapted to that regular water, large number of them get infected by water-borne
diseases.
Typhoid is initiated due to dirty water wherein different bacteria and virus duplicate.
And children disease is always there. There are government efforts, but they are
highly limited to immunization. Malnutrition is also widespread especially if agri-
cultural productivity is reduced that year. Employees of health posts fail to provide
comprehensive services because they are limited in number; they cannot move
everywhere physically; the community has not yet developed the average aware-
ness to come to receive consultation services in advance (HOARCM20, 23/04/11).
And additionally, there are spread cases of TB, bilharzias, and HIV. Victims of TB
have options to attend Woyra health center and Attat hospital. Bilharzia victims,
however, had no medication and awareness about it. They kept it as something
natural and obliged to adapt the pain. There are seven HIV/AIDS positive individu-
als here in this neighborhood. What we give them is only advices. They have quite
insignificant amount of UNICIEF financial support, provided quite in an extended
interval of time. However, that is quite inadequate, only 50 or 60 birr for two and
three years (HOARCM45, 25/04/11).
Though there are progresses in mothers’ side, the majority still lack even the minimum
awareness how to handle pregnancy, delivery and child care. Only few, and mainly young
mothers, tend to attend Woyra health center during pregnancy. While many appear re-
