On the morning of May 21, Sa Dec Ward People's Committee, Dong Thap province said that 62 people including 56 students and 6 adults are being treated at Sa Dec General Hospital and Phuong Chau Sa Dec Hospital due to suspected food poisoning after a semi-boarding meal at Kim Dong Elementary School.
According to reports, all cases showed symptoms of fever, nausea, diarrhea from about 2:30 pm to 11:00 pm on May 18 and were monitored at home. After that, patients were successively hospitalized in the period from 9:00 am on May 19 to 8:00 am on May 21. Previously, Lao Dong Newspaper had reported on the case of many students and teachers' families of Kim Dong Elementary School being hospitalized after using semi-boarding meals at the school. As of the afternoon of May 20, there were 27 people hospitalized.
These people all used food at school on May 18 with a menu including: white rice, pork shumai, sweet cabbage soup with shrimp, water spinach, areca banana; afternoon snack with banh su. By the morning of May 21, the number of hospitalizations increased to 62 people. Among them, there were 56 students out of a total of 505 students eating semi-boarding at school and 6 adults. Currently, the health of 60 people has stabilized, especially 2 cases with severe developments are being treated at the Intensive Care Unit and Pediatrics Department of Sa Dec General Hospital.
Sa Dec Ward People's Committee has issued a decision to conduct an unexpected inter-sectoral inspection of food safety for Kim Dong Elementary School; and at the same time requested the school to temporarily suspend the organization of semi-boarding meals from May 20.
Sa Dec 1 Regional Health Center coordinated with Sa Dec Ward People's Committee to investigate and handle the incident; took food samples stored from May 18 and 19 for testing according to regulations. Functional agencies are coordinating to verify the cause of the incident. Sa Dec General Hospital also took samples of 13 people sent to Dong Thap CDC for testing.
Hospitals continue to closely monitor patient health developments, treat promptly and wait for test results to determine the cause and handle according to regulations.
