SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique — The Integrated Provincial Health Office (IPHO) is eyeing to distribute mosquito net rolls to schools in some municipalities of Antique province that are plagued by dengue.
IPHO information officer Irene Dulduco, in an interview on Tuesday, said there was an increase in the incidence of dengue in the province although it has not yet reached the alert threshold.
Dulduco said the provincial government has allocated about PHP700,000 for the mosquito net rolls to be installed in the schools to cover windows and other possible entry points of mosquitoes.
“This is a safety precautionary measure for students,” she said.
However, no date has been set as to when the mosquito net rolls would be distributed.
Dulduco added that aside from the mosquito net rolls, Intravenous (IV) fluids and dengue test kits will be provided to the eight hospitals in the province, using an additional budget of PHP135,000 from the provincial government.
The surging incidence of dengue is one of the reasons why Antique was placed under a state of calamity last August 9.
“From Jan. 1 to Aug. 4, Antique has had 557 dengue cases,” she said, noting that the figure is equivalent to a 69 percent increase compared to 330 cases in the same period last year.
Three deaths were recorded in the municipalities of Hamtic last Jan. 2, Belison last Feb. 18, and Sebaste last June 11.
From July 8 to Aug. 4 when the monsoon rains lashed at the province, eight towns recorded clustered dengue cases — Barbaza, Belison, Bugasong, Caluya, Culasi, Sebaste, Sibalom, and Valderrama. (Annabel Consuelo Petinglay/PNA)
