August 2-8, 2010

Dengue cases hit 1,535 with 11 deaths  

By GERRY T. PAGHARION

                ROXAS CITY –The Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council on August 2 held an emergency meeting to draw up plans of action on how to combat the rising cases of dengue in Capiz which, from January up to July 27 this year, have already reached 1,285, with 10 deaths.

                The next day, Aug. 3, the Capiz Provincial Board, acting on the request of Gov. Victor Tanco, Sr., convened for a special session and declared Capiz in a state of calamity due to the dengue outbreak.

                The declaration was needed to allow the province to use the 5 percent calamity fund.  The sight of overflowing dengue patients in several hospitals here was proof enough of the gravity of the problem, health officials said.

                As of press time, the number of dengue cases in Capiz has shot up to a record 1,535, with 11 deaths.

                The Roxas City Council here also declared  an outbreak of dengue fever in the city in the wake of the rising number of cases that has reached 444, with five deaths, since Janruary until Aug. 7.

                The council held a special session Aug. 7 upon the request of Mayor Angel Alan Celino, for the sole purpose of declaring the outbreak.

                Using a portion of the city’s calamity fund, Celino said, the City Government would be able to provide its households with mosquito nets and repellents.

                The city government will  likewise pay for the processing fee of indigent patients in need of blood transfusion, in coordination with the Philippine Red Cross.

                Vice Mayor Ronnie Dadivas said each member of the City Council would also do their share by leading clean-up drives .

                This Friday, Aug. 13, there will be simultaneous clean-up drives throughout the province on top of the daily 4 0’clock habit to fully disseminate to the people the needed information about dengue.

                                                        APPEAL FOR UNITY

                The Governor, who is also the PDCC chair, earlier issued an executive order declaring Capiz in a “state of impending outbreak of dengue cases.”  He appealed for unity from all the Province’s sectors in the wake of the outbreak, stressing that such problem “transcends geographical, personal and political boundaries.”

                In the presence of some board members who are not his political allies, Tanco stressed at the PDCC meeting that   it will be only when everybody unites and helps one another that the threat of dengue outbreak in the province could be dealt with effectively.

                The Governor noted that this was the first time that dengue cases in Capiz have reached more than 1,000.

                Dr. Evelyn Bolido, Medical  Specialist IV of Capiz’s Integrated Provincial Health Office, noted the dramatic increase in the number of dengue cases in Capiz, noting that in 2008, there were only 126 cases for the whole year and 306 cases in the whole 2009.

                However, for this year, more than 1,000 cases have already been reported during the seven-month period (January to July), Bolido said.

                                                        OUTNUMBERED

                A source said Tanco was having difficulty convincing the board to make the declaration because the LP, the Governor’s party, is outnumbered in the board 8-5 in favor of Ugyon Kita Capiz.

                However, board members belonging to Ugyon Kita Capiz present during the PDC meeting appeared supportive of  the idea to declare Capiz in a state of calamity after being apprised of the magnitude of the problem.

                The board’s chair of the committee on health, Board Member Mimi Ardivilla,  expressed support for the declaration of Capiz in  state of calamity provided “proper measures are taken” to see to it that funds are solely used for such purpose.

                Board members aligned with Ugyon who attended the meeting held at the Pag-ulikid Training Center in ESLA, Lanot here were board members Jeffrey Layo, James Magbanua, Mimi Ardivilla and Blesilda Almalbis. The other members of the Ugyon in the board are Camilo Robles and the ex-officio members representing the PCL, the SK and the Liga nga mga Barangay.

                The LP, on the other hand,  has five members in the provincial legislative body.  They are Sonny Besa, Aldwin Cruz-Am, Remia Fuentes-Bartolome, Roberto Ignacio and Eduardo Magallanes.

                                                         ALARMING

                In his letter to the board members coursed thru the board’s presiding officer, Vice Gov. Esteban Evan B. Contreras all, Tanco said, the Department of Health and Provincial Health Office monitoring reports reveal that the clustering of dengue cases in different barangays in almost all municipalities has increased astronomically from 51 in July 17 to 76 in July 24, thus reaching a level of an actual Dengue  Fever Outbreak which is already categorized as Epidemic.”  

 Dengue is a mosquito-borne disease that causes infection to humans thru a bite of an infected female mosquito known as Aedes Aegypti. The mosquitoes thrive in clear, stagnant water and only attack the victims during daytime.

                Prevention has been cited by health officials as the most effective way of combating the mosquito-borne disease as there has been no known cure for it once it reaches its “acute stage.”

                Board member Layo said there was a need to strengthen the preventive measures before going into the “curative measures.”

                                                          LACK OF BLOOD DONORS

                Jessie Contreras, administrator of Capiz Emmanuel Hospital in which the bulk of the dengue victims in Capiz was confined, lamented that Capiz “does not have a blood bank,” and went on to enumerate other  problems they have encountered as a result of the outbreak, like lack of beds.

                Charles Robles, chair of the Philippine National Red Cross in Capiz, refuted Contreras’ statement by saying “we actually have a blood bank.’  The problem is, Robles explained, the lack of (blood) donors.

                Robles said only 30 percent constitute the so-called “voluntary (blood) donors” while 70 percent are classified as “paid donors.”

                That’s why, he said, unless the community cooperates, it would be hard to ensure a steady supply of blood badly needed by the dengue victims as the blood platelets only last five days.

                He also suggested that hospitals must have refrigerators to store the blood.

                Tanco said that if there are enough funds, the province can buy folding beds and even share these beds with other private hospitals which are often caught in a dilemma on how to accommodate the overflowing dengue patients.