Provincial doctors receive training in dengue-fever treatment as cases increase

 

HCM City (VNA) – More at hospitals in provinces and
districts throughout the country will receive on of
dengue fever, as the number of cases has increased since the end of May and
overcrowding continues at city and central-level hospitals.

Nguyen Trong Khoa, the deputy head of Medical Examination and Treatment
Department, said the Hospital for Tropical Diseases and two paediatrics
hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City would provide further training to doctors at
hospitals in the southern region.

Khoa spoke at a recent meeting
with the Ministry of Health’s supervision team and the city’s Department of
Health as well as representatives of the city’s Preventive Health Centre and
hospitals.

A representative of the
Hospital for Tropical Diseases reported that the number of patients with dengue
fever at the hospital began to increase at the end of May.

The hospital’s
infectious diseases department, for instance, treated 60 dengue
fever inpatients in June, increasing from a monthly average of 40 compared
to the last few months.

The department does not
have space for beds in its rooms and has put beds in hallways.

Meanwhile, according to HCM
City Paediatrics Hospital No.1’s report, new incidences of dengue fever rose in
June to 297, increasing from 242 in May.

Of the 297 patients with
dengue fever, 140 were from other provinces.

Dr Phan Trong Lan, head
of the Pasteur Institute, said that 30-40 percent of patients at the Hospital
for Tropical Diseases and two paediatrics hospitals, which treat serious health
problems, are from other provinces.

Khoa said the proportion
of patients from provinces at the three hospitals should be reduced and that
doctors at hospitals in provinces need better training.

“Although training has
been provided, doctors who have training are of retirement age while those who
will replace them have not yet been trained, leading to ineffectiveness in
treatment,” Khoa said.

“If doctors without
experience in treating dengue fever do not detect signs early, some patients
who are seriously ill could go into shock,” he said.

HCM City has
opened one more paediatrics hospital in its outlying district of Binh Chanh to
reduce overcrowding at the existing paediatrics hospitals.

Dr Tran Dac Phu, head of
Preventive Health Department under Ministry of Health, said that the number of
cases of dengue fever was expected to rise.

According to the
department, 36,437 new cases of dengue fever have been recorded at 47 provinces
and cities since early January, including 10 fatalities.

Of the total, around 70 percent
were in the southern region.

Preventive measures

Phu said that new preventive
measures would be applied to limit the increase of dengue fever cases.

The Ministry of
Health had set up nine supervision teams for dengue-fever prevention
throughout the country, while preventive health officials in districts
would offer counselling on improving cooperation to enhance effectiveness.

“The community
needs to learn more about the importance of clearing water containers which
could be home to mosquito larvae,” he added.

Dr Nguyen Huu Hung,
deputy head of the city’s Department of Health, said the city was using an IT
database to compile data of new cases of dengue fever from health facilities.

Information about these
patients would be sent to districts so that preventive measures could be taken,
such as spraying chemicals to destroy mosquitoes in certain areas.

Several private health
facilities in HCM City had reported new cases of , Hưng said.

The city had fined
organisations and individuals who did not cleared away water containers after
being told many times, he added.
Last year, 76 cases were
fined, and 46 have received fines this year.

According to a
Preventive Health Centre report, the city has recorded 9,141 new incidences of
dengue fever, an increase of 11 percent compared to the same period last year.
Of these, three patients died.

The districts of Binh Tan
and 12 had the highest increase of incidences in June, with 115 percent and 74 percent
respectively compared to June last year.

A representative of
District 12’s Preventive Health Division said that health officials had not yet
identified the riskiest areas.-VNA