PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (April 4, 2002 – Post-Courier)---Fourteen children have died in three months following a measles outbreak in Western Highlands Province.
Since January, 250 measles patients, all children and three teenagers, have been admitted to Mt. Hagen General Hospital.
The pediatric ward’s 47 beds are filled, with several patients sleeping on the floor.
The incidence of the disease is unprecedented in the hospital’s history.
And the number of admissions is increasing. Over the Easter weekend, 12 new patients were admitted.
More than 80 patients were in the ward, the hospital’s director of medical services Dr. Mathias Tovilu said yesterday.
Measles is caused by a virus. Children not immunized are prone to the virus.
Dr. Tovilu urged parents to bring their children for immunization.
The shortage of medical supplies is an added setback for patients.
Dr. Tovilu said if new medical supplies did not reach...