Baguio prepares action plan versus Dengue
The local government recently crafted an action plan involving concerned sectors of the city to contain the rapid increase of the dreaded dengue fever with the soonest of the rainy season.
City Health Officer Dr. Rowena Galpo disclosed that on the part of the city, there will be the issuance of an executive order activating the dengue task force while the various district health centers must ensure the conduct of weekly cleanup in 20 barangays aside from the implementation of other dengue prevention measures.
She claimed that there will also be the conduct of regular meetings and action planning with the members of the dengue task force in catchment barangays.
For the schools, the city health officer stipulated that school officials must assign focal persons for each school aside from the inclusion of dengue prevention information and education campaign in Parents-Teachers Association (PTA) conferences as part of the widest form of disseminating information on how to combat the increase of the dreaded virus.
For hospitals, she emphasized the need to start activating the so-called dengue fast lane in the different private and public health facilities coupled with the review of dengue clinical pathway guidelines, inventory review for whatever amendments that will be introduced for effective and efficient response against the further spread of the virus.
On the other hand, Galpo stated that there will also be a conduct of vector surveillance by sanitary inspectors as deemed necessary apart from ensuring that the conduct of Operation Taub and cleanup drive in the barangays will be enhanced.
Part of the aforesaid campaign will be the collection and disposal of old, unused, littered bottles, containers in all the city’s 128 barangays.
According to her, schools are also mandated to conduct the 4 o’clock habit and 4s strategy daily apart from installing insecticide-treated screens and the scheduling of fogging operations as needed in coordination with the City Health Services Office (CHSO).
Galpo also recommended the conduct of daily inspection of classrooms by teachers for possible breeding sites of dengue-carrying mosquitoes while hospitals are also mandated to conduct a daily checking of breeding areas of the said mosquitoes.
The medical officer used for the double checking of the integrity of treated screens to ensure their compliance to standards to prevent the same from being intruded by the dengue carrying mosquitoes.
She recommended for the issuance of an order for the conduct of daily cleaning for households and weekly cleanup drive in all of the city’s barangays apart from posting of social media cards daily every 4 pm for the whole month of June reminding people on the importance of getting rid of the breeding sites of dengue carrying mosquitoes.
Further, she encouraged the conduct of community assemblies and bench conferences about dengue awareness, social media posting, random visits and inspection of barangays apart from the inclusion of dengue advisories during COVId-19 mobile vaccination and home visits. – Dexter A. See
