Since the start of our deworming session in April this year, our local health educator has visited 18 of our 24 literacy centers. She educates both the students and their parents about worm infestation and how to prevent it by paying attention to good hygiene.
Our health educator also measured the students’ heights and weights before giving them a dose of anthelmintic (deworming) medicine. These height and weight measurements will be used to give us an idea of the efficacy of the deworming program.
From the first round of measurements, about 20% of the students fall within the underweight growth curve, whilst 5% fall within the severely underweight curve. Feedback from the teachers, parents, and students from centers that have had the deworming sessions is that at least 70% of the students excreted parasites and are much more alert and energetic now.
Our health educator will be revisiting each center in 6 months’ time to re-measure heights and weights.