DepEd wants more H1N1 personnel for the schools

CEBU, Philippines – The increasing number of students having Influenza A(H1N1) in Central Visayas has pressured the Department of Education to look into designating more personnel to take care of the health concerns of the over 4,000 basic education schools in the region.

DepEd-7 regional director Recaredo Borgonia said they would have wanted each school or at least each district to have one health personnel to be more equipped in fighting the spread of the flu virus in schools.

However, due to lack of available position, DepEd could not do so.

Currently, DepEd-7 only has 200 health personnel who are nurses, doctors, dentists and other related positions.

These 200 personnel are serving more than 4,000 elementary and secondary schools all over the region.

Borgonia said they have requested for additional health personnel even before the outbreak of H1N1 in the country.

But the Department of Budget and Management and DepEd central office has not approved their requested items due to limited availability.

Borgonia said that they however understand that their request for additional health personnel is not possible at this time considering the situation of the country.

DepEd however assured that each school has first aid teachers. Efforts and measures put in place to protect students in schools from H1N1 are strictly enforced.

Because they lack health personnel, DepEd is instead focusing on programs that aim to improve the health of each student to prevent them from acquiring diseases.

DepEd strongly required schools to have handwashing facilities and intensified information campaign about the prevention of H1N1 as well as how to handle the disease in case one gets infected.

So far, there are four basic education schools in the region with confirmed case of H1N1. These are St. Francis of Assisi School with four cases, and Paref Springdale, Bethany Christian School and Mary Help of Christians School with one confirmed case each.

The Department of Health did not disclose if they are part of the 45 new cases reported last Wednesday.

The total number of confirmed cases in the region has already ballooned to 91. Since May 4, DOH-7 has recorded 300 cases under observation, 42 of which are still pending in the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.

DOH-7 regional director Susana Madarieta in reports yesterday confirmed that there is already a low-level community transmission in the region. It is considered low because although the virus is spreading fast its victims are also recovering fast.

As of July 9, meanwhile, the DOH has confirmed 2,688 H1N1 cases, but 95 percent, or 2,543 people, have already recovered. — Jessica Ann Pareja/BRP (THE FREEMAN)