MANILA, Philippines — The growth of dengue cases this year is alarming. So, in an effort to raise awareness on dengue, Watsons Philippines recently held "Slay the Swarm: The Anti-Dengue Fashion Phenomenon," in Liwasang Aurora Ampitheater, Quezon Memorial Circle.
It was Dengue community awareness with a unique art and fashion performance, educational and fun booth activities for the public, and creative promotion of healthcare. The Watsons health advocacy campaign had the support of Quezon City Local government.
“This pioneering health education effort combines art and performance to raise awareness on an often overlooked health concern. We see the importance for us to tackle the seriousness of dengue - why this viral infection shouldn’t be taken lightly, but at the same time, we don’t need to be afraid of it,” shared Watsons Customer Director Jared de Guzman.
The Swarm’s costumes represented common symptoms of dengue: rashes in the form of lumps and bumps accents, fever via illuminating flames, nausea as shown in the stimulating and dizzying patterns, and body pain using spikes and sharp silhouettes. The costumes were designed by Oz Go of House of Mizrahi.
There is a reason why Slay the Swarm was staged in Quezon City. It is the city with one of the highest cases of Dengue in Metro Manila. In fact, Dr. Marlon Molano, Medical Officer III of the Quezon City Health Department, shared that from January 1 to August 24, 2023, the Quezon City Epidemiology and Disease Surveillance Unit (QCESU) logged in 2,156 Dengue cases. In contrast, the total cases for the whole year of 2022 was 2,558.
“This campaign allows our youth to be well-informed, to be proactive in the fight against dengue, and to propagate the series of awareness through the current information path of this generation, which is social media,” he said.
Dr. Molano commended Watsons, a private partner, for supporting a public health endeavor. “Watsons, I cannot stress how valuable this activity is, to our city and our community,” he said as he reiterated that it is only August and yet Quezon City is already nearing the total cases it had recorded last year.
Anti-Dengue essentials
During the event, families enjoyed a whole day of surprises from Watsons, with engaging booth activities from event partners DirtBugSun, Tiger Balm, OFF!, Bite Block, Soffell, Bye Bye Fever, and Salonpas. “As your health partner, Watsons is determined to expand their already wide-range products so the people are protected and healthy all year round—rain or shine,” De Guzman said.
Special performances
Visitors of Quezon Memorial Circle also had the rare chance of witnessing special performances during the main event. Four performers, in high-fashion mosquito costumes, emerged from the trash-adorned Hotspot art installation and strutted across the area, with arms flailing about in a vogue-ing dance manner. They scattered throughout the place and interacted with the public as if they were spreading the dengue virus. However, they were no match against the glamorous Watsons Kontra-Dengue Duo, for the strength of Watsons insect-repellent and immunity-boosting products proved to be more powerful than the mosquitoes. The mosquitoes slowly backed away until they were no longer in the picture, accepting their defeat, and the Watsons Kontra-Dengue Duo finished with a strong and synergistic performance.
Both adults and children enjoyed the fashion presentation and took their time to pose for photos with the performers and the art installations.