District’s efforts vs dengue boosted ahead of PB call

CEBU, Philippines - All municipalities in the second district of Cebu have intensified the campaign on dengue prevention and control since July, ahead of the call of the Provincial Board and its declaration of a dengue outbreak all over the province.

PB Member Jose Mari Salvador said that municipalities in the district have recorded the least number of dengue cases as a result of his personally-initiated anti-dengue awareness campaign.

Aware of the limited resources of the government and the long procedure to utilize funds, Salvador said that he, being a nurse by profession, and his wife, who is a doctor, imparted their knowledge directly to the community since he assumed office on July.

"Human sa lecture, mosulod g'yud mi sa area, tan-awon namo nanglimpyo ba," he said.

Salvador said the lecture was attended by barangay officials, tanods, health workers and the residents.

Alcoy town recorded 14 dengue cases without death, the highest among the seven municipalities in the second district. Other towns are Argao, Boljoon, Dalaguete, Oslob, Samboan and Santander.

 Based on the record of frequency of dengue cases of the Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit-7 for Cebu Province, Alcoy placed 13th, far behind the 55 cases of Alcantara landing in the 12th place, while the rest on top have more than 100 up to 500 cases from January to September 24, 2016.

The top 10 towns and component cities are Toledo City, Balamban, Carcar City, Liloan, Talisay City, Consolacion, Danao City, San Fernando, Naga City and Cordova.

With the declaration, Salvador is hoping that his own initiative could now be supported by the provincial government.

"Makatabang ni sa ato kampanya, sa una, kami-kami ra g'yud," he said.

The PB member is also hoping that other local government units would actively involve in the campaign and that their support is not just up to the paper only.

"Pero kung wa'y mo-lead, mao ra gihapon mahitabo," Salvador added.

The PB declared last week a dengue outbreak all over the province, echoing an announcement of the Provincial Health Office amid a recent "abnormal" surge in dengue cases.

 All LGUs are urged to intensify the campaign against dengue.

The public, too, is encouraged to participate in massive cleanup operations in places identified as breeding grounds of mosquitoes like areas near creeks, rivers, and other waterways and crop fields where informal settlers build houses with poor sanitation. (FREEMAN)