The dengue fever epidemic is complicated
According to the Department of Health of Dak Lak province , from the beginning of the year to July 20, 2024, the area had a total of 715 cases of dengue fever with more than 40 outbreaks distributed throughout districts, towns and cities. Although there have been no deaths, it is predicted that in the coming months, the number of infections will show signs of increasing when there is a lot of rain.
Buon Ma Thuot city is the area with the highest number of dengue fever cases in Dak Lak province with 203 cases.
Ms. Do Thuc Vy - Medical Station Officer of Thanh Nhat Ward, Buon Ma Thuot City said: As soon as an infected case is detected, the medical force immediately goes to each household to investigate, monitor and spray disinfectant chemicals. bacteria, not to spread to a large area.
According to statistics from the Department of Health of Lam Dong province, from the beginning of the year to mid-July 2024, 3,284 cases of dengue fever were recorded, an increase of 1,845 cases compared to the same period in 2023.
Bao Loc city has the highest number of dengue fever cases with 1,243 cases, accounting for 37.8% of cases in the entire province. In Lam Dong province, 1 death was recorded. The case of death due to dengue fever was a patient born in 1986, in village 1, Dai Lao commune, Bao Loc city.
Also related to disease prevention and control, functional agencies in Lam Dong province promptly prevented the spread of 694 dengue fever outbreaks on a large scale.
In Gia Lai province, since the beginning of the year until now, the locality has recorded nearly 500 cases of dengue fever. It is expected that the number of dengue fever cases will increase, especially in the peak months of the epidemic (from June to November every year).
People's awareness of disease prevention and control is still low
Mr. Trinh Van Quyet - Deputy Director of the Department of Health of Lam Dong province - said that it is forecast that the dengue fever situation in the province will continue to record high levels in 2024 and the following years.
The dengue epidemic situation depends on many factors such as weather, climate, and rainfall during the year. Climate change and erratic rain and sunshine create favorable conditions for disease-carrying mosquitoes to survive and multiply. In particular, the temperature of Lam Dong province creates favorable conditions for the Aedes mosquito population to develop.
Besides, the reality is that anti-epidemic activities in outbreak areas are still difficult, not thorough, and effective. The reason is that disease prevention and control mainly depends on the awareness of people and the community through activities to kill larvae and eliminate larvae nests.
Mr. Le Phuc - Deputy Director of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) of Dak Lak province - said that dengue fever is no longer a seasonal disease but circulates all year round.
Although dengue prevention and control activities have been implemented for many years, an increasing number of dengue fever cases still occur. There are many reasons, but one important factor is people's awareness. In some localities, environmental sanitation work is still not carried out regularly. People's cooperation in disease prevention and control is still limited. A part of the people still do not fully realize the importance of environmental sanitation, do not proactively prevent and control diseases but only rely on chemical spraying by the health sector.
Mr. Hoang Hai Phuc - Director of CDC of Dak Lak province - informed that in response to the situation of infectious diseases in Dak Lak province increasing rapidly and becoming extremely complicated, the unit has requested the Department of Health to grant additional experience. Emergency infectious disease prevention and control fees are still lacking with a total budget of about 500 million VND.
