City Health Office (CHO) Tropical Diseases Division Head Melodina Babante said the deaths caused by dengue from January to August have also reached 28 dengue-related deaths significantly higher than the 13 that were recorded in the same period last year.
Babante said dengue cases in the city have increased, due to irregular weather patterns that aided the breeding process of dengue-carrying mosquitoes.
She emphasized that the fight against dengue must be taken in the community level, asking every barangay to form their own Barangay Mosquito-Borne Viral Disease Task Force dedicated entirely to reducing the number of dengue cases in their area.
The fact that the CHO cannot intervene alone, the CHO is enabling barangay officials to aid in the intervention of this disease, according to Babante.
“The residents play an important role in fighting this dengue disease, we are working with local officials to form a dengue task force,” Babante said, quoting in CHO FB Page.
The task force is critical in performing a coordinated effort to limit the spread of dengue-carrying mosquitoes by searching for and eliminating breeding places.
The task force, according to her, could further monitor people under its responsibility for signs of infection and use early intervention to prevent an outbreak.
Out of 182 barangays here, only nine have a Mosquito-Borne Viral Disease Task Force.
These barangays, she said , have reported the lowest number of dengue infections in recent years, indicating that the task force is efficient in lowering dengue cases.
Another 14 barangays have previously formed their own task forces, but these have now remained dormant and must be reactivated, she said.
Under Executive Order No. 33 issued in 2019, the Barangays were mandated to form a task force, however, she said only a few have established their Mosquito-Borne Viral Disease Task Force.
The CHO is currently working with the Department of Health (DOH) to develop a strategy to compel barangay local government units to establish or reactivate their task force and to remind citizens that dengue is a highly fatal disease that creates a real threat in all communities.