SAN JOSE, Antique – Frequent rain in this capital town of Antique province has hampered the implementation of the four o’clock habit to get rid of dengue mosquito-breeding places.
“We had been advocating for the people in the barangays to practice the four o’clock habit of cleaning up their surroundings to get rid of the dengue mosquito vectors, but then because of the frequent rain they could not do so every afternoon,” San Jose de Buenavista Municipal Health Officer Melba Billones said.
Citing the latest data from the Antique Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO), Billones said their municipality has the highest number of dengue cases in the province with 262 cases as of June 25.
She said mosquito eggs thrive in fallen leaves, flower pots, old tires, and other containers that hold stagnant water and turn into biting mosquitoes after a few days.
This, she added, is why their barangay-based dengue task forces, headed by the barangay captains, have initiated the four o’clock habit of cleaning up the surroundings.
“As of today, there are six dengue patients who are being attended to in our isolation facility in Barangay Dalipe,” Billones said.
These patients have not manifested severe symptoms of dengue, which is why they have not been referred to the Angel Salazar Memorial General Hospital, the provincial hospital in San Jose de Buenavista.
The isolation facility has a hydration unit so that the platelet count of dengue patients would not drop to dangerous levels and cause death.
Antique has recorded a total of 1,174 dengue cases as of June 25, which is 431 percent higher than last year’s 221 cases logged in the same period.
There have been four deaths so far this year, compared to only two in 2021. (PNA)
