Scientific and efficient handling of bodies of the deceased persons could have been a major factor that helped Kerala control the spread of Nipah virus infection in 2018, states a study published recently in an international medical journal.
The study by four doctors from the State, published in the journal of American Medicine of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, in June 2020 cites that the State was able to come up with a new standard operating procedure for funerals taking cultural practices into account, which largely helped in checking the spread of the disease.
The study has been co-authored by Prajith. K. C, Arya Rahul and Anish. T.S of the Department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, along with R. S. Gopakumar, Health Officer of Kozhikode Municipal Corporation, who had played a significant role in the funerals of 12 out of the 17 who died of NiV infection in 2018.
The study titled ‘Stakeholder perspective of handling the deceased during Nipah Virus outbreak in Kerala, South India, 2018’ explains how the various stakeholders such as the government machinery, health workers , religious leaders and the public reacted to the outbreak and how Kerala proved that education and scientific priming of the community was the backbone of any epidemic control.
The study points out that evidences of transmission of infection from the corpses of the patients to healthy people were reported from Guinea and Liberia during Ebola outbreak in those countries in 2014 and also from Bangladesh during Nipah outbreak in 2010. The cleaning process of the corpses before funeral and touching the corpse for various rituals led to fast transmission, the study noted.
It commends the role played by the health workers in Kozhikode Corporation, who were in charge of the funerals, ten of which were cremations, while two were deep burials. They had to do everything from being pall bearers to doing the funeral rites while the relatives of the deceased stayed away out of fear. They had shortage of resources, but the State response was swift to provide everything necessary.
The study was prepared through detailed interviews of stakeholders in December 2018.
