Snakebite Prevention and First Aid
An animated video to teach children and their families snakebite prevention and treatment tips.
Audience: Community health education
Languages: English; SiSwati
Format: Video
Key topics: Snakebite prevention; Snakebite treatment
According to the World Health Organization, 5.4 million people are bitten by snakes every year with 2.7 million envenomings (poisoning from snakebites). Snakebite envenomings are a major concern in Eswatini, where the majority of the population lives in rural areas or works in agriculture, making them more likely to come into contact with the region’s poisonous snakes.
Once bitten, the same population is at higher risk of disability or death from poisoning due to the prohibitive cost and shortage of antivenom. Its steep cost, short shelf life, and need for refrigeration make antivenom inaccessible for many patients, prompting the need for alternative care tactics.
The best-known cure for a snakebite? Preventing it in the first place.
We teamed up with the Eswatini Antivenom Foundation to create an animated video on snakebite prevention and first-aid treatment tips through the eyes of Dudu and Jabu, two children living in rural Eswatini. The video is meant to be shown in primary and secondary schools to teach children and their families how to prepare for snakebite season, which typically runs from September through May of each year.
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