From January 1- June 5 this year, 357 people in Phuket had been confirmed by local hospitals as contracting dengue, the same figure revealed in a report posted on the Department of Disease Control DDC website also yesterday (See report here.).
However, the report also confirms that the island’s death rate from dengue remains at two.
A report posted on the DDC website on April 10 confirmed that since the start of the year 220 people in Phuket had been confirmed by local hospitals as contracting dengue. (See story here.)
Speaking to The Phuket News’ Thai-language sister paper Khao Phuket today, Dr Krit Sakulpead Deputy Phuket Public Health Officer said that there is still a growing concern about the number of people in Phuket contracting dengue.
“Based on recent data, we have found that the campaign to prevent the spread of dengue fever in the area and the outbreak of dengue has not been fully addressed. In addition, some villagers are unaware of the dangers and do not follow anti-mosquito measures as they should.
“The campaign to prevent the spread of dengue in Phuket isn’t working. Phuket still has the highest patient rate in Thailand. It is important that villagers be more active in protecting themselves and their families from mosquitoes and dengue,” he said.
“Phuket’s population doesn’t equal that of the people actually registered here and it is possible that this contributes to the island’s higher patient rate. Anyhow, what we need to focus on is awareness of the dangers.
“The rate of Phuket’s patients is ranked first in the country. However, I agree that government agencies and related parties are urgently exploring and destroying mosquito larvae at various locations according to the strategy to reduce the outbreak in the home or at schools,” Dr Krit added.
“Finally, the most important thing is that everyone needs to take care of themselves from mosquitoes. Using mosquito repellent should be a habit,” Doctor Krit said.