the goan I network
MARGAO
Amidst the battle against coronavirus, the Margao Urban Health Centre is bracing up for yet another round of battle “ the battle against dengue.
With monsoons fast approaching and the commercial capital hit by a dengue epidemic last year, Margao Urban Health officials are preparing the ground to fight dengue alongside coronavirus.
If the health centre had conducted around four drives in its jurisdiction, covering the entire Margao municipal area this month, it has drawn up an action plan to hold as many as eight drives across the town before the onset of monsoons.
Take note, the battle against dengue isn’t going to reduce the role of the UHC in the battle against coronavirus as health workers are expected to play a major role in ensuring home quarantining of people as per the norms.
Margao Urban Health official Dr Anju Kharangate said that the centre has in no way lowered its guard as far as dengue is concerned even though health officials have been roped in the Covid-19 battle.
“We are taking steps to fight dengue and other vector-borne diseases in the town. The officials and the field staff are all geared up for the battle against dengue before the onset of monsoons,” she added.
Dr Kharangate added: “Our officials are roped in by the health department in the battle against Covid to monitor home quarantine of persons. Once we receive details such as names and addresses of persons to be home quarantined, health officials descend on the residences of these persons and paste boards stating that the person is home quarantined.”
Year 2019 may go down in the records books of the Margao UHC as a bad year on the dengue front, with hundreds of cases reported from Margao and Fatorda areas.
In fact, the town nearly witnessed an epidemic, as the number of cases went up with each passing day, putting a strain on the logistics at the Hospicio hospital, forcing the authorities to take up treatment of dengue patients on the floor.
Hospicio was not spared either with many a nurse, paramedics affected by the disease last year.
With last year’s bitter experience, the Margao UHC is geared up to meet the situation, with the officials distributing mosquito nets and disinfecting breeding sites at the construction sites across the State.
“We have around 103 construction sites in the Margao municipal area. Though migrant workers are not at the site, health workers are carrying out anti-larvae operations at the breeding sites,” Dr Kharangate added.
