BOTSWANA – FRANCISTOWN (Mmegi) - It was supposed to be a normal day for patients at Botswelelo Clinic in Somerset Extension who went to get their ARV doses. But then the itches started.
The patients were being bitten by nits (mankgantsetse in Setswana), the parasitic tiny black insects found on the necks of fowls. Initially, they did not see the miscreants who were crawling all over the grass-thatched structures built as shelter for HIV/AIDS patients. Apparently, the nits came with the pigeons that use the structure at night to sleep.
One patient said that at first she did not suspect anything when her ankles started itching. The itch moved up her body up to the neck and the arms. At first, it felt nice. "But the itching did not stop. And I started getting worried that perhaps I was experiencing the side effects of these tablets. When I started taking them, my counsellors informed me that I might develop painful sores all over the body. Or I may experience nightmares and hallucinating. "But I have never had those things. These tablets are just like any other medication. I feel on top of the world right now because of them and I wish other Batswana who are diagnosed with HIV could take them as religiously as I do," the woman who could not disclose her name because of her status said.
As she was scraping her body with her nails, a man coughing persistently nearby was doing the same. He too, decided to remain anonymous because of his status. "I didn't know what was biting me at first. I thought may be I had lice, but my wife and children always make sure my clothes are clean. Besides, I never miss a day without taking a bath. Had it not been for someone from the crowd who shouted 'batho, re bolawa ke matsetse' (People, nits are killing us)," I may not have known what was happening to me," he said. Some of the patients reported the matter to the environmental health workers who were lurking in the background. The workers came and sprayed the place and the itching stopped.
The medical staff attending the patients must have been oblivious to the problem as they came late. The nurse in charge of the clinic could not be reached for comment as she was said to be off duty. But some workers recalled seeing the patients standing up en-masse and complaining about the nits. "I was there. I saw them. But what can we do except to spray the walls from time to time. We cannot kill the birds, can we?" she asked rhetorically.
The clinic belongs to the Francistown City Council (FCC). Council officials could not be reached for comment.