LGUs asked to send dengue cases updates

CEBU, Philippines —  The local government units (LGU) in the province will now be urged to send updates on the dengue situation of their localities to the Cebu Provincial Health Office (CPHO).

A resolution was passed in the Sanggunian Panlalawigan yesterday encouraging LGUs to coordinate with the CPHO regarding the dengue cases in their areas.

"It is also but proper that the Rural Health Unit of the Municipalities and Component Cities of the Province of Cebu would regularly update the Cebu Provincial Health Office if there are dengue cases in their locality," read a part of the resolution.

This move by the SP was made in response to the recent declaration of a National Dengue Alert last July 15 by the Department of Health.

There have been 3,185 reported dengue cases in the Province of Cebu alone, wherein 19 of those resulted to death.

However, this month has seen a steady decline in the number of new cases with 108 reported cases for July.

This is less than half of last month's total of 286 cases.

"Sa amoa lang, i-intensify lang jud sa LGUs ang cleanup drives nga campaigns gyud especially in eliminating the breeding sites," Provincial Health Officer Dr. Christina Gianggo said.

Meanwhile, the PHO is still accepting misting requests from the different LGUs.

In Cebu, the cities and municipalities with the highest number of dengue cases in the province are Danao City with 247 cases, Talisay City with 174 cases, Minglanilla with 173 cases, Consolacion with 154 cases, and Toledo City with 151 cases.

Across Region 7, Cebu topped the list of provinces with the highest number of dengue deaths and cases and the number continues to increase based on the record of Regional Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit for the period of January 1 to July 13, 2019.

The RESU-7 has already recorded 9,594 cases of dengue with 62 deaths, which is 151 percent higher compared to the same period of last year with 3,823 cases and 25 deaths.

Majority of the cases and deaths were from Cebu City with 14.3 percent; followed by Lapu-Lapu City with 6.5 percent, Danao City, 2.8 percent and Dumaguete City, 2.8 percent.

Most of those affected were under 6-10 years old comprising 26.2 percent of the total, and both sexes almost equally represented.

Last July 15, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III declared a nationwide dengue alert following the massive increase in the reported number of dengue cases all over the country.

Among the regions that have exceeded the epidemic is Central Visayas with 9,199 cases reported since the beginning of the year. Of this number, about 3,333 cases were recorded from the beginning of the year to the second week of July are from Cebu Province alone.

There have been nine deaths due to dengue reported since the start of the year within the province.

"Atong gipahibaw ang mga Rural Health Units nga i-activate ang dengue-brigade," Dr. Sheila Faciol, the Provincial Health Office Public Health Coordinator said in an earlier interview with reporters.

The dengue brigade is a barangay-wide dengue-monitoring team that is supposed to exist in each municipality in Cebu tasked to conduct dengue surveillance and spearhead cleanup drives.

Aside from this, the local government units are also encouraged to conduct information campaigns in schools and to urge their residents to maintain the cleanliness of their surroundings.

"Nag-uwan naman karon, so daghan na ug kapunduhan sa tubig nga pwedeng kapangitlogan sa lamok," Faciol said.

According to her dengue cases usually spike during this time of the year due to the abundance of stagnant water where disease-carrying mosquitos lay their eggs.

Misting activities have also been done by the Provincial Health Office in the different municipalities like Daanbantayan, Consolacion, and Liloan.  — GAN  (FREEMAN)