After raising an alarm over the death of five Albay residents due to rabies in just two months, the Albay Provincial Government is now working double time to control the spread of rabies by conducting a massive awareness campaign.
A 9-year-old child from the town of Pio Duran is the latest casualty this week according to the Provincial Epidemiology and Surveillance Unit (PESU).
PESU-Albay Coordinator Jan Edmund Dominic Bailon said the 4 other victims are from municipalities of Jovellar, Bacacay, Tiwi, and Pio Duran.
March is rabies awareness month. But despite repetitive information campaigns, rabies cases are on the rise.
DOH-CHD Bicol reiterates vaccination of pets is a proven, effective measure to control the spread of the rabies virus.
DOH Bicol is still in the process of collating data on rabies cases in the region this year except this report that there were 11 human deaths due to rabies in 2018, 27 in 2019, 26 in 2020, 35 in 2021, 16 in 2022, and 26 in 2023.
DOH is set to conduct town hall meetings in other Bicol provinces.
A rabies awareness forum was conducted yesterday March 1, 2024, by the Albay Veterinary Office with select youth leaders throughout the province as participants with the goal to empower pet ownership and rabies eradication.
In an attempt to contain rabies in Pio Duran town, the Albay Provincial Health Office is also investigating the close contacts of the 9-year-old child recently.
The Albay Provincial Government’s Facebook post states that “A report from Pio Duran RHU stated that the 9-year-old victim, male, a resident of Purok Santo Cristo, reportedly died early this morning, five months after he was bitten by a rabid dog last September 2023.
The boy exhibited clear symptoms of rabies encephalitis like aerophobia, hydrophobia, and excessive salivation.”
A prompt investigation and a scheduled barangay assembly for rabies awareness for the residents of said barangay, and an immediate contact tracing for possible close contacts is being made by the Rural Health Unit of Pio Duran.
An intensified and massive rabies awareness campaign on social media is also being done.