HCM CITY — HCM City’s People’s Committee has directed the city’s health department and districts’ people’s committees, in collaboration with agencies at all levels, to take measures to prevent the Ebola virus from entering the country, which has appeared in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The virus in the Congo could spread to neighbouring countries in Africa, according to the World Heath Organization (WHO).

WHO has reported 58 confirmed and suspected cases of Ebola in the Congo, including 27 deaths from April 4 to May 29.

The Ministry of Health has told districts and cities’ people’s committees to enhance supervision at border gates, international airports, and hospitals and health-care facilities.

From June 8-14, HCM City recorded 202 cases of dengue fever and 47 cases of hand-foot-mouth disease, according to the city’s Health Preventive Centre.

The health sector in the central province of Bình Thuận is tightening measures to prevent disease outbreaks that typically occur during the rainy season. Changing weather creates favourable conditions for illnesses such as red eyes, chickenpox, diarrhea, dengue fever and hand-foot-mouth disease.

Hoàng Văn Hùng of the province’s Health Preventive Centre attributed the increase in these diseases to unusual weather patterns, a large number of visitors, and transportation of poultry and cattle.

The province’s medical network has strengthened epidemic prevention measures, as well as the monitoring and surveillance of diseases to ensure timely detection and treatment.

The province has set up mobile teams to support communities in case of need, and has launched public campaigns to prevent dengue fever infections. This includes steps to kill mosquito larvae and remove standing water in waste collection areas and rubbish in rivers and canals.

It has also prepared vehicles, equipment and medicine to tackle any possible outbreak.

The province’s health sector has asked local residents to avoid crowded places to reduce their risk of infection and get necessary vaccines for protection.

If anyone has abnormal symptoms, they should go directly to a health facility, Hùng said.

Since the beginning of this year, the province has recorded 247 chickenpox cases, a 2.2 times increase compared with the same period last year, according to the province’s Preventive Medicine Centre.

There have been 220 hand-foot-mouth cases in the province, an increase of 12 per cent against the same period last year, and nearly 320 cases of dengue fever, which was 2.5 times lower than the same period last year.  — VNS