LINGAYEN, Pangasinan – Amid reports that animal bites and rabies infections continue to pose serious public health problems in Pangasinan, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan passed a resolution urging all local chief executives or mayors to fully implement and intensify their anti-rabies campaign in the province.
Board Members Amado “Pogi” I. Espino III, Napoleon Fontelera and Rene Sison authored Proposed Provincial Resolution No. 1319-2015 which seeks to intensify the anti-rabies campaign by “tapping the barangays to spearhead programs that could deliver vital service intervention to animal bites and rabies cases.”
According to reports from the Provincial Health Office, as of May 4, 2015 which is only more than a month over the first quarter, the PHO has already listed 12 confirmed human rabies cases compared with the 11 cases in 2014.
BM Espino said the provincial government has been alarmed over the rising incidence of rabies cases in Pangasinan prompting the provincial board to address the problem by asking the support of every local government unit to implement the campaign.
The concern has also been placed on the local government units which urge the barangays to closely coordinate with said LGUs who can help augment their limited resources.
BM Espino, who is also Liga ng mga Barangay president, said the call extends not only to pet owners but also to parents who should take extra care of their children to avoid being bitten by stray animals that may endanger the victims and lead them to their death especially the young who are most vulnerable to animal bites.
Responsible parenthood, BM Espino said, also plays an important role in the province’s cry against the anti-rabies menace for the parents to keep close watch of their children from animal bites.
Meanwhile, the Office of the Provincial Veterinarian (OPV) said there are at least 300, 000 stray dogs in Pangasinan.
Dr. Eric Perez, Officer-in-Charge Provincial Veterinarian, said the OPV has been conducting regular vaccination activities in the various areas of the province as part of the anti-rabies campaign program.
Among the plans of BM Espino in relation to the anti-rabies campaign, is to urge every Sangguniang Bayan to have a program for the intensification efforts and ask the PHO to formulate a plan that could be adopted for the anti-rabies program.
The provincial board also advised to intensify the program’s information campaign saying that cases of rabies must be reported immediately to the concerned agencies.
By Dexter A. See
