Authorities investigating outbreak of gastroenteritis following death of baby

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – Health authorities are investigating whether or not the death of a seven-month-old baby is linked to an increase in cases of gastroenteritis in Jamaica. The baby died at the Bustamante Hospital for Children prompting the Ministry of Health to determine whether the quality of water being used by residents and consumed by the infant had been contaminated. Health Minister Dr. Fenton Ferguson said that up to the end of April, there was a 52 per cent increase in the number of gastroenteritis cases this year compared to the corresponding period last year. The biggest increase was in the last week of April when there were 965 cases as compared with 522 in 2012.