Health officials and experts have stressed coordinated efforts and a national plan to battle the current onslaught of dengue.
Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) adviser and infectious disease expert Dr. Mostaq Hossain said it is not possible to control dengue without concerted efforts.
“To eliminate the breeding ground of Aedes mosquitoes in Dhaka and across the country, a coordinated initiative has to be undertaken,” he told UNB.
“We have a directive from the inter-ministerial task force. There are many initiatives that can be handled individually and many that have to be done in coordination. To clean your flat, you need the coordination of experienced city corporation workers, flat owners association volunteers and local public representatives,” he added.
DrHossain warned that preaching would not work if there is no concerted effort to destroy Aedes mosquitoes’ breeding grounds.
He also cautioned that fines won’t solve issues related to public health.
“When the city corporation workers come, people will not open the door, they will not allow them to enter. Because they knew if they open the door they would be fined,” he said.
“Fines can be imposed in general matters,” he said, adding: “But you shouldn’t drive people away by imposing fines on public health matters. Follow the framework of community engagement outlined in the local government department’s guidelines.”
The IEDCR adviser stressed on increasing infrastructure and workforce under the city corporations to efficiently tackle the dengue outbreak.
Jahangirnagar University entomologist DrKabirul Bashar told UNB that a national plan should be prepared to protect the people of the country from dengue.
“In the coming days, a national plan should be prepared with all stakeholders by discussing, analyzing what can be done to control the dengue outbreak in Bangladesh,” he said. “If necessary, a national institution called the Institute of Vector Control should be established.”
Dr Bashar warned that the dengue situation could worsen in the next two months.
“The next two months (August and September) are very worrying for us as the death and dengue infection rate might surpass the previous records,” he said.
“In the next two months, we will see 7-8 times more dengue patients than July. That’s why we have to be more careful.”
He urged the authorities to identify and destroy Aedes breeding grounds in a bid to control the outbreak.
“So far, we were talking about dengue in the two city corporations of Dhaka. Now we are seeing Aedes mosquitoes spreading all over the country. Dengue has spread in other upazilas. No one knows why dengue is spreading in areas outside Dhaka,” he said.
Dr Bashar called on the government to fund research to determine how the onslaught of dengue is spreading to other areas outside Dhaka.
Kabirul Bashar said that earlier 40 percent of Aedes mosquitoes in Dhaka city used to breed in under-construction buildings which has now come down to 19 percent due to the city corporation’s drive.
“But this time, in the study, we found 43 percent of mosquitoes in multipurpose buildings. We have seen that the city corporation officials and residents do not go to the multipurpose buildings where the vehicles are parked. As a result, aedes larvae are growing in accumulated water there,” he said.
Director (MIS) of the Directorate General of Health Services Prof. Md. ShahadatHossain said the total number of dengue patients in the country in June was 5,056, compared to 38,429 dengue patients in July — a staggering seven-fold rise in Dengue cases.
“In this situation, DGHS has urged the general public to come forward along with strengthening the mosquito eradication program of the city corporation to tackle the outbreak,” he told UNB.
“At present, many hospitals in the capital have been filled with patients infected by the mosquito-borne disease. We are making all efforts from the Department of Health to control the situation so that dengue patients can come to the hospital and get proper medical care.”
Besides, the Department of Health is carrying out various awareness activities to make people aware, the DGHS director added.
