Dengue deaths rise, Task Force to meet

Disna MUDALIGE

Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena called for an urgent meeting with the Presidential Task Force on Dengue Prevention on Monday to discuss immediate measures to control the dengue epidemic which is raising its head, once again throughout the country.

He said the National Committee of the Task Force comprising representatives of 12 ministries, Provincial Councils and Local Government institutions will take part in this urgent meeting.

The minister said special attention will be drawn to the immediate future steps, gaps and loopholes of the past dengue prevention programmes and how to improve the public contribution for dengue prevention

campaigns during this meeting. He said the number of suspected dengue cases islandwide had surpassed 14,000 this year. Seventy four deaths have been reported due to the dengue epidemic.

Over 50 percent of the dengue cases had been reported from the Western Province.Meanwhile, Lady Ridgeway Hospital Director Dr Ratnasiri Hewage said the number of hospital admissions from dengue fever has gone up this year. He said six wards of the hospital had been allocated for children treated for dengue.

He said 1,615 patients and nine deaths had been reported from the hospital since the beginning of this year. He advised parents to seek medial advice without delay if their child has continuous fever.