City urges community to combat dengue

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Jakarta administration encouraged residents on Friday to be more active in fumigating and cleaning up their neighborhoods as the number of dengue fever patients in the capital continued to rise.

City Health Agency spokeswoman Zelfino said the unusually high number of dengue fever patients was the result of the unusually wet dry season.

She said dengue fever was usually more of a problem during the wet season and during the end and the beginning of the year.

"If residents fail to fumigate their neighborhoods and clean up the puddles and sitting water where the Aedes aegypti mosquito usually breeds, we may see more dengue patients," she told The Jakarta Post.

Zelfino said that from Jan. 1 to Thursday, there had been a total of 12,036 dengue fever patients in Jakarta, with 60 deaths.

City-owned Fatmawati Hospital in South Jakarta has treated a total of 62 inpatients for dengue fever, including 14 children.

Another city-owned hospital, Tarakan Hospital in Central Jakarta, has treated 57 inpatients for dengue, including 19 children.

"Two new patients were admitted to the hospital on Thursday," said nurse coordinator Sulis.

She said 34 additional beds were required on Thursday night to handle the influx of patients. She added that the nurses were able to cope with the workload with the help of nursing students.

Sumber Waras Hospital in West Jakarta has treated 23 inpatients for dengue fever, including eight children.

"We are also treating three other inpatients who are still under observation to determine whether they are infected with the dengue virus," said hospital medical services director Jimmy Setiawan.

Since last year the central government has paid the medical bills of dengue patients, the majority of whom are impoverished. (004)