The Department of Health-CALABARZON (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, Quezon) regional office held a four-day “Training on the Insecticide Application and Introduction of Dengue Indoor and Outdoor Residual Spraying for Sanitary Inspectors and Spraymen” of various local government units of Batangas.
“Spraying and misting operations is done to suppress an ongoing epidemic or to prevent one like dengue” stressed Regional Director Eduardo Janairo.
The event dealt on the safe and correct use of residual insecticide to indoor surfaces and outdoor surroundings to get rid of the breeding places of mosquitoes.
Aside from protectting the health of people, Janairo also said the move would guarantee the health and safety of a sprayman.
“Proper handling and spraying of insecticides during spraying operations is very important for the welfare of the community including the sprayman,” said Janairo.
He cited the need to observe safety precautions. Because of this, he said every personnel involved in vector prevention and control must be well trained and equipped with the knowledge and skills to avoid any incident.
A total of 70 participants were trained on the preparation of the spraying machine and equipment including the proper mixture of chemicals, handling and spraying techniques.
Participants were also introduced to three types of spraying machines and how to operate each of them.
Procedures after spraying such as proper disposal of remains of insecticides and empty packaging including preventive maintenance and troubleshooting of the equipment is included in the four-day training.
According to Janairo, there are some steps that should be followed before spraying and misting is conducted in the community to avoid any untoward incident.
“First, households must be informed of the spraying schedule and the purpose of spraying, giving the occupants time to prepare and vacate the house; secondly, occupants must leave their house before spraying and those who are sick and cannot leave the room must and not be sprayed; third, household items, including water, food, cooking utensils and toys, must be covered and removed from the house for easy access. Pets and caged animals must also be moved away from the spray area.”
The Regional Surveillance and Epidemiology Unit reported a total of 5,910 cases of Dengue Fever in the region from Jan. 1-March 23 with 21 deaths.
The province of Cavite recorded the highest number of dengue cases with 1,880 followed by Batangas with 1,332 and Laguna with 1,183; Quezon with 829 and Rizal with 686 cases.
This year’s number of cases is 0 percent lower compared to the same period last year with 5,925. Ages of cases ranged from 1 month to 100 years old. Majority of the cases were males with 3,143 cases (53 percent).
Among the top 10 cities and municipalities with the most number of Dengue cases in CALABARZON are Dasmarinas (355), Lipa City (295), Batangas City (277), Bacoor (275), Calamba City (255), Imus (224), Lopez (219), San Pablo City (208), Tanauan City (181) and General Trias (176).
DJanairo added that multiple vector control measures directed against Aedes mosquitoes are being conducted in areas where high number dengue cases were recorded such as searching and destroying of mosquito breeding sites, larviciding, space-spraying, residual spraying (both indoor and outdoor) and the use of school-based long-lasting insecticide treated screens/curtains.