Dengue, COVID-19 surges to compromise Local Health Care system

22 July 2021 – Local health authorities disclosed that the surges in dengue fever and Corona Virus Disease (COVID) 2019 cases in the city will compromise the local health care system and stress the frontliners that will worsen the prevailing situation which should not be the case.

Engr. Charles Bryan Carame, head of the City Health Services office’s sanitation division, stated that in most cases, dengue fever infects the young population while COVID-19 usually infects the older population, thus, when there will be simultaneous surges in cases of both illnesses, then it will be a bigger problem for concerned government agencies and the local government to contain the said situation.

However, he claimed that such an extraordinary situation could be avoided once residents will continue to adhere to the implementation of the minimum health protocols to contain the spread of dengue and the traditional 4S against dengue fever.

Based on the data obtained from the CHSO, there were 416 dengue fever cases recorded in the city from January 1 to July 22 this year which is over 300 percent more than the 103 cases reported during the same period last year.

He stipulated that residents must destroy the breeding ground of dengue carrying mosquitoes which are usually the containers of clear and stagnant water inside and outside their residences to prevent the presence of the same that might cause them to be ill.

Further, he advised people having flu-like symptoms to avoid self-medication but to immediately seek early medical consultation in the nearest health facility so that they will be provided with the appropriate diagnosis.

According to him, people must also wear long pants and long-sleeved shirts as part of their self-protection measures from being bitten by the dengue-carrying mosquitoes aside from the use of mosquito repellants in their respective houses.

He emphasized that fogging should remain as the last option in getting rid of the dengue-carrying mosquitoes as long as their breeding ground inside and outside houses are effectively and efficiently destroyed.

Carame pointed out that residents should continue to comply with the prevailing implementation of the basic and health and safety standards because it is still the best way to combat the spread of these illnesses while awaiting the successful roll out of the ongoing mass vaccination program geared towards achieving population protection and eventually herd immunity possibly within the next several months.

The CHSO sanitation chief underscored that because of the ongoing threat of COVID-19 aggravated by the rise in rainy day illnesses, people should continue practicing additional layers of protection to spare them from contracting the dreaded illnesses and avoid the worst-case scenario in the city’s health care system and among the hardworking frontliners.

The CHSO has monitored the clustering of dengue cases in some of the city’s barangays that prompted them to raise the alert for people to continue practicing the 4S to combat the further increase in dengue fever cases in the city and avoid the occurrence of the worst-case scenario. – Dexter A. See