St. Elizabeth Health Dept. Launches Public Education Campaign to Combat Dengue

The St. Elizabeth Health Department has initiated a comprehensive public education initiative, dubbed the Dengue High-Intensity Intervention In-Towns (Dengue H.I.I.T) campaign, aimed at combatting the spread of dengue.

Chief Public Health Inspector, Nelesha Brown-Wint, told the monthly meeting of the St. Elizabeth Municipal Corporation on November 9 that the campaign takes the form of a roadshow and is to run from November to December.

The Department’s team of health professionals and personnel will move from town to town educating the citizens of the parish on dengue-prevention strategies, according to Mrs. Brown-Wint.

“This initiative was launched in Santa Cruz on Friday, November 3,” she noted, adding that the team would be in New Market on November 10.

“We’ll be in Balaclava on the 17th, Junction on the 24th twinning with the Know Your Numbers campaign, and in Southfield on December 1,” she added.

Mrs. Brown-Wint indicated that the campaign, which is designed to make prevention strategies entertaining and engaging for the public, will culminate in a grand show in Black River on December 8.

“Coupled with our roadshow is a dengue song and jingle competition, and social media campaign. This is where members of the public are invited to create a jingle about dengue fever and its symptom prevention, and this is posted on our Southern Regional Health Authority social media platforms,” Mrs. Brown-Wint explained.

“The most popular jingle will be selected to perform at our Black River show on the 8th of December,” she added.

The jingle is to be videotaped and shot within 30 to 90 seconds, where it will be posted on the entity’s Tik Tok, Instagram and Facebook pages for the public to vote.

The deadline for submission is December 1.

“Our first-place winner will be given a cash prize of $35,000; second-place, $20,000, and our third-place will receive $10,000. We look forward to the Councillors and agencies submitting articles, songs and encouraging others to join forces in fighting this dengue fever outbreak,” Mrs. Brown-Wint said.

In the meantime, the Department’s proactive measures during the month of October included intensive vector-control activities.

Collaborating with 17 permanent vector-control staff and 70 temporary personnel, the entity’s 32 public health inspectors ramped up larvicidal and adulticidal activities across the parish to diminish the mosquito population.

Their extensive effort involved inspecting 17,517 premises across 15 localities, uncovering 3,050 sites conducive to mosquito breeding.

The Aedes index peaked at 17.4, the highest it has been in a few years, prompting adulticidal treatment in over 51 localities.

“The number of reported suspected dengue cases in the parish since the start of the year up to the 3rd of November was 206, of which eight were confirmed positive. There are also, unfortunately, seven suspected dengue deaths reported in the parish,” Mrs. Brown-Wint said.