Coping crisis: Dengue patient count keeps rising

35 fresh cases of dengue reported in district in 2 days.

FAISALABAD:

A total of 35 cases of the dengue fever have been reported in the district during the past 48 hours.

According to health officials, 35 cases of dengue fever were reported with 5 patients in critical condition in Faisalabad, whereas 3 patients have been discharged from government hospitals after being treated for the dengue virus. According to executive district officer (EDO) Health Dr Abdur Rauf, 18 of the most recent patients have been admitted to the Allied Hospital, while the remaining 11 were kept in District Headquarters (DHQ) Hospital Faisalabad. “All necessary arrangements have been made to deal with the epidemic” the EDO said.

Rauf told reporters that as many as 90 patients of dengue fever had been treated in the Faisalabad district including 62 patients in Allied Hospital and 15 in the DHQ Hospital. He said that a total of 28 patients came from urban areas and 26 from rural areas of Faisalabad while the remaining number belonged to Lahore, Chiniot, Jhang, and Toba Tek Singh.

The EDO said that the local health department had made elaborate arrangements to curb the menace of dengue fever. “The entire Health Department staff is on high alert. However, it is of utmost importance that the people take precautionary measures and ensure that they spray regularly,” he added.

A DCO office spokesperson said that emergency committees had been constituted at the town level to accelerate efforts for the elimination of the dengue virus. He said that a special cell had also been established at the commissioner’s office to deal with dengue related complaints in addition to launching a strong media campaign to curb the spread of the virus. Director Health Services was nominated as a focal person to monitor and review the performance of these committees on a daily basis.

While official reports put the dengue count at 90 patents, there are over 200 patients estimated by THQ and DHQ hospitals .

Several local residents have protested against the district administration for not taking effective steps to curb the disease. Residents said that open spaces, green belts, ponds, open drains, filthy depots, public places which were normally considered a breeding ground for mosquitoes had not been sprayed and official agencies had been ignoring the potential threat.



Published in The Express Tribune, September 10^th, 2011.