Lessons for Kerala from Nipah

The lessons from Nipah are clear - we need quick and efficient diagnosis to contain infectious diseases

Kerala is again bracing for disease outbreaks in the aftermath of massive rains and floods. It has been almost two months since the state, where Nipah infection killed 17 people in May 2018, was declared Nipah-free. A similar incident of Nipah in Siliguri in 2001 took 49 lives before it was contained. The quick reactions of the health care responders in Kerala limited the spread of this highly infectious disease. The mechanisms through which this swift response worked highlight the networks that underlie public health whilst also exposing crucial gaps in our public and private health care systems. This article