CEBU CITY SEES HIGHEST DENGUE INCIDENCE - Cebu Circle | Cebu City, Philippines

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Wednesday, October 28, 2009

CEBU CITY SEES HIGHEST DENGUE INCIDENCE

DENGUE cases in Cebu City this year are still higher compared to incidents during the same period last year and in 2007.
Though there are efforts being made by the City, city councilors have lamented that they were not enough, especially that there are still patients who died due to the illness caused by infected mosquitoes.
According to records from the City Health Department (CHD), 2009 has the most number of dengue incidents since 2007.

From Jan, 1 to Oct. 24 this year, 1,611 dengue incidents with 34 deaths were recorded, which were higher compared to 1,128 cases in 2008 and 1,544 cases in 2007.
During the rainy months of August and September, in particular, 2009 recorded the most number of dengue cases with 416 and 400, respectively, compared to just 128 and 69 in 2008, and 352 and 319 in 2007.
In an interview yesterday, Assistant City Epidemiologist Durinda Macasocol said the City Government is launching next month its “green star homes” campaign as another initiative in fighting dengue.
The City Council this month already set aside P500,000 for the project, which involves placing green stars on homes whose occupants have mastered the search-and-destroy strategy against mosquito breeding sites.
That is aside from the weekly pulong-pulongs (gatherings) and mist-spraying being made by the CHD.
Macasocol said the green star homes project will have 24 volunteers trained on conducting an entomological survey, who will go from one house to another looking for breeding sites and instructing residents on the right things to do.
The pilot area is Barangay Tisa, where two children died of dengue last August.
“Actually, people already know what to do. We will just refresh their memory so they will do it every day,” she said.
The volunteers would then return to inspect the houses after one to two weeks.
If they find that the residents have responded well, they will place green stickers outside the homes to signify their compliance with the standards of the project.
The volunteers, she said, should be trained on how to conduct the survey and to have good communication skills.
City consultant Rene Sanapo said P250,000 of the funds will be for the honorarium of the training lecturer; while P150,000 will be for supplies, and P100,000 for four laptops.
The P500,000 was included in the seventh supplemental appropriation the city council passed last Oct. 7. (RHM)
(Sunstar)

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