Woodpulp…Barbados

BARBADOS

67 known cases of dengue fever by NationNews.com, Wed, August 18, 2010

SIXTY-SEVEN CASES OF DENGUE FEVER HAVE BEEN CONFIRMED SO FAR THIS YEAR IN BARBADOS. 

ACCORDING TO THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH, 20 OF THESE CASES WERE CONFIRMED DURING THE FIRST TWO WEEKS OF AUGUST AND THREE WERE CLASSIFIED AS DENGUE HAEMORRHAGIC FEVER.

NOTING THERE HAD BEEN A SHARP RISE IN SUSPECTED AND CONFIRMED CASES OF DENGUE FEVER HERE AND IN SOME OTHER CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES, THE MINISTRY SAID IT HAD INTENSIFIED ITS DENGUE FEVER SURVEILLANCE AND UNDERTAKEN MEASURES TO REDUCE MOSQUITO BREEDING PLACES AROUND THE ISLAND.

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE ALSO ADVISED THAT PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS WOULD CONTINUE TO UNDERTAKE ALL PREVENTIVE AND CONTROL MEASURES AS NEEDED AT THIS TIME.

THE MINISTRY ADDED THAT DOCTORS HAD BEEN SENSITISED ABOUT THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF DENGUE AND LABORATORY SUPPORT EXISTED FOR THE CONFIRMATION OF SUCH CASES, WHILE THE QUEEN ELIZABETH HOSPITAL ALSO HAD MEASURES IN PLACE.

CONTROL MEASURES

MEANWHILE, THE ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT, IN AN EFFORT TO REDUCE THE AEDES AEGYPTI MOSQUITO POPULATION THAT TRANSMITS DENGUE, CONTINUES TO IMPLEMENT SEVERAL PREVENTION AND CONTROL MEASURES, SUCH AS HOUSE TO HOUSE, HOTEL/GUEST HOUSE INSPECTIONS, INVESTIGATION OF MOSQUITO COMPLAINTS AND SUSPECTED/CONFIRMED DENGUE CASES, FOGGING OF MOSQUITO-INFECTED AREAS, SPRAYING OF AIRCRAFT FROM DENGUE-AFFECTED AREAS, MONITORING OF THE MOSQUITO POPULATION AT THE PORTS OF ENTRY, AND TREATMENT OF MOSQUITO BREEDING SITES.

FURTHERMORE, THE DEPARTMENT HAS ENHANCED ITS CAPACITY TO PLAN ITS RESPONSE TO COMPLAINTS BY USING A GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEM TO MAP ALL FACTORS RELATED TO MOSQUITO CONTROL. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME THAT THIS TECHNOLOGY IS BEING APPLIED TO VECTOR CONTROL MANAGEMENT IN BARBADOS.

MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE REMINDED THAT ELIMINATING PLACES WHERE WATER CAN COLLECT AROUND THE HOME AND COMMUNITY IS ONE OF THE MOST EFFECTIVE MEASURES FOR CONTROLLING MOSQUITO BREEDING AND STOPPING THE SPREAD OF DENGUE FEVER.

MEASURES INCLUDE COVERING WATER CONTAINERS, PROPERLY DISPOSING OF UNWANTED CONTAINERS AND TYRES, COVERING AND SEALING WELLS AND SEPTIC TANKS AND KEEPING ROOF GUTTERS CLEAN. (BGIS)

GET ON BOARD AGAINST DENGUE BYNATIONNEWS.COM, MON, AUGUST 16, 2010

THE PREVALENCE OF DENGUE FEVER IN BARBADOS IS AT A CRITICAL LEVEL, MINISTER OF HEALTH DONVILLE INNISS DISCLOSED YESTERDAY.
THE MINISTER SAID GOVERNMENT AND THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH COULDN’T WIN THE WAR ON THEIR OWN – ALL BARBADIANS HAD TO GET ON BOARD WHEN IT CAME TO PROTECTING THE POPULATION FROM THE DEADLY AEDES AEGYPTI MOSQUITO.

INNISS SAID THAT IT WAS TIME BARBADIANS TOOK THE THREAT OF DENGUE MORE SERIOUSLY, AND STARTED ACTING MORE RESPONSIBLY BY NOT DUMPING ILLEGALLY AND INDISCRIMINATELY, THEREBY CREATING ENVIRONMENTS WHERE THE MOSQUITO COULD BREED.[…]

HE REVEALED THAT THE COUNTRY’S CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER AND A NUMBER OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH OFFICERS WOULD BE WORKING DOUBLE TIME THIS WEEK TO COLLECT DATA AND COME UP WITH A REVAMPED PLAN TO DEAL WITH THE RECENT DENGUE OUTBREAK.

“DENGUE FEVER IS STILL A MATTER OF GRAVE CONCERN FOR THE AUTHORITIES RIGHT NOW. WHAT THE COUNTRY NEEDS IS ALL HANDS ON DECK. I WANT TO SEE THE CITIZENS OF BARBADOS WALKING AROUND THEIR RESIDENCES AND IN THEIR COMMUNITIES TO MAKE SURE NO BREEDING AREAS EXIST. I DON’T WANT THE COUNTRY TO WAIT UNTIL THE SITUATION HAS REACHED CRISIS PROPORTIONS FOR EVERYONE TO GET INVOLVED,” INNISS ADDED.(BA)

BARBADOS – OFFICIALS WORRIED ABOUT DENGUEBY CMC, POSTED AUG 11TH, 2010

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Health officials in Barbados say they are worried about a spike in the number of dengue fever cases on the island.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Joy St John has confirmed that there have been 43 confirmed cases of the mosquito-borne virus this year.

Over the past three weeks, five persons suspected of having dengue fever have been admitted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, the island’s main healthcare facility.  Three of those cases have been confirmed as dengue.

“We have had an explosion in the last seven weeks compared to last year in the number of cases.  It is just not simply a case of more cases this year as compared to 2009, but the concern is how the numbers have racked up over the last two months,” Dr St John told the local Nation newspaper.

There have been a large number of confirmed cases in neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago and the Chief Medical Officer said there could implications for Barbados in light of dengue cases popping up in other parts of the Caribbean.

“We in Barbados need to be aware that there is so much traffic in the Caribbean that we have to be mindful.  If there is traffic and there is a serotype that hasn’t circulated in Barbados for a while, it could be quite dangerous, which is what is happening in Trinidad,” she said.

Dr St John said the Health Ministry has been in contact and given clear directives to health service providers as to how to deal with the situation.

“We have sent out bulletins to all doctors – public and private sector – and we have also gone specifically to the QEH and we did a training session[…]

“We have spoken directly with the private laboratories and impressed upon them the importance of submitting the information for the suspected cases and the tests that they have done so that we have a clear indication of what is going on, not only in numbers but geographically,” the Chief Medical Officer added.[…] Additional Resource: Dengue Alert

TECHNOLOGY SOON TO TRACK DENGUE BY CARLOS ATWELL, 

NATIONNEWS.COM, SUN, AUGUST 01, 2010

THE ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH DEPARTMENT WILL SOON BE USING TECHNOLOGY TO TRACK DENGUE CASES.

IN A TELEPHONE INTERVIEW ON FRIDAY, CHIEF ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICER TYRONE APPLEWHAITE SAID THE AUTOMATED INSPECTION METHODOLOGY PROGRAMME WOULD REVOLUTIONISE THE WAY THE DEPARTMENT OPERATED.“WE WILL BE INPUTTING ALL CASES OF COMPLAINTS AND CASES OF DENGUE FEVER AS WELL AS SUSPECTED CASES [TO] THE SYSTEM SO WE CAN SEE THEM IN REAL TIME ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND CAN IN TURN DIRECT OUR FOGGING PROGRAMME AND HOUSE-TO– HOUSE INSPECTIONS,” APPLEWHAITE SAID.“WE WANT TO GET TO THE POINT WHERE OUR OFFICIALS WILL BE USING PALM PILOTS TO UPDATE THE SYSTEM BUT IN THE MEANTIME, WE HAVE TO MOVE IN AN INCREMENTAL FASHION,” HE ADDED.“THE IDEA WAS AROUND FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS AND OVER THAT TIME, WE HAVE BEEN BUILDING CAPACITY AND CONDUCTING FAMILIARISATION TRAINING,” HE SAID.APPLEWHAITE SAID THE PROGRAMME WAS BUILT AROUND THE GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SYSTEM PLATFORM AND WOULD INITIALLY BE MADE AVAILABLE TO ALL THE CATCHMENT AREAS.DURING A PRESS CONFERENCE EARLIER IN THE FRANK WALCOTT BUILDING, CULLODEN ROAD, ST MICHAEL, APPLEWHAITE SAID THEY WERE WORKING WITH MOST OF THE UTILITY COMPANIES TO TARGET THE MORE THAN 3 000 UNDERGROUND JUNCTION BOXES AND UNDERGROUND WATER TANKS, SOME OF WHICH WERE MOSQUITO BREEDING GROUNDS.HE SAID THIS INFORMATION WOULD ALSO BE UPLOADED INTO THE SYSTEM. 

ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SPECIALIST WITH RESPONSIBILITY FOR VECTOR CONTROL, RONALD CHAPMAN, IS IN CHARGE OF IMPLEMENTING THE PROGRAMME.

IN THE PRESS CONFERENCE, HE SAID THE PROGRAMME WOULD TAKE THE FORM OF A DIGITAL MAP.

“THAT PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS US TO LOOK AT A DIGITAL MAP WHERE WE CAN PLOT EVERY COMPLAINT AND PLOT THE INCIDENCES OF DISEASE ON THAT MAP.

“IT WILL ALLOW US TO SEE WHETHER THERE ARE CLUSTERS OF AREAS WHERE  WE CAN TARGET OUR CONTROL PROGRAMMES.

“WHEN ALL THE INFORMATION IS ON PAPER, IT IS VERY HARD TO SEE SPATIALLY WHAT IS GOING ON BUT WHEN YOU PUT IT ON A MAP, IT IS VERY EASY TO SAY ‘WE ARE HAVING PROBLEMS HERE’ OR ‘OVER HERE IS NOT HAVING ANY PROBLEMS’ AND THAT GIVES US A STRONG TOOL TO HELP MANAGE OUR MOSQUITO POPULATION AS WELL AS DENGUE FEVER,” HE SAID.