DOH warns evacuees on disease outbreak

MANILA, Philippines — With thousands still in evacuation centers following heavy monsoon rains over the weekend, the Department of Health (DOH) is bracing for possible outbreaks of diseases.

Health workers were dispatched to  various evacuation centers to attend to the medical needs of the evacuees, DOH Undersecretary Eric Domingo said yesterday.

“The problem in evacuation centers is usually congestion. If there are many people, viral infection can easily spread ... We don’t want that to happen,” Domingo said. 

He also stressed the need to keep the premises of evacuation centers clean and provide adequate toilet facilities for the evacuees.  

“One way to prevent infection is frequent handwashing, and make sure there are no mosquitoes in the area... There should also be adequate supply of potable water.  We are closely monitoring the situation... in coordination with local government units,” Domingo said.

He said the DOH also prepositioned medicine and other medical supplies worth P15.07 million in affected areas. The DOH main office had earlier released P59.2 million to its regional offices and DOH hospitals.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said more than 100,000 individuals or 22,000 families were staying in over 200 evacuation centers in Ilocos, Cagayan Valley,  the Cordilleras, Calabarzon and Metro Manila as of Tuesday.

In San Mateo, Rizal, which was placed under a state of calamity, at least 5,000 families or more than 25,000 individuals remain in evacuation centers. Fifteen barangays in the town were affected by flooding.

Malacañang urged residents whose houses remain flooded to stay in evacuation centers for their safety.

Infant formula ban

Meanwhile, Domingo reiterated that the ban on donation of infant formula for evacuees stays, in keeping with the Milk Code of the Philippines.

“We don’t allow infant formula donations. Nothing can beat breast milk especially in times of calamities when the potability of water supply cannot be guaranteed,” he said.