STOP DENGUE. The Iloilo Provincial Health Office (IPHO) collects mosquito larvae and identify new breeding sites in Barangay Odiongan in Badiangan, Iloilo on June 13, 2024. The IPHO is calling on the support of communities and the activation of the Aksyon Barangay Kontra Dengue (ABKD) to stop the increasing number of cases in the province. (Photo courtesy of IPHO)
ILOILO CITY – The City Health Office (CHO) here urged the public on Monday to be on high alert and intensify the conduct of preventive measures against dengue following the death of a 69-year-old woman, the first fatality of the year.
At a press conference, CHO head Dr. Anabelle Tang said the first fatality from Barangay Tabuc Suba was already jaundiced when brought to a medical facility last week.
The primary cause of her death was dengue, but she was also infected with leptospirosis.
“We have to be on high alert because it’s rainy season,” Tang said.
Nonetheless, she said the city’s 73 cases from February until July 12 this year are still far from the alert threshold.
She added that the city government is also preparing a hydration unit on the second floor of the La Paz Maternity and Reproductive Health Center in La Paz district, which is expected to be ready by the end of this week to cater to possible admission.
It has 25 hospital beds, complete with medical staff and supplies.
“That was used before as a quarantine facility,” she said.
The hydration unit is similar to an infirmary and could not admit the patient for a longer period, she said.
“The protocol states that if the patient needs to be hydrated for more than 24 to 48 hours, then the patient has to be admitted,” she added.
Iloilo City’s 180 barangays also conduct a simultaneous cleanup drive every Saturday to destroy possible mosquito breeding sites. (PNA)
