Dengue Awareness for YOU and Your Family

When Kyle started his new school at Early Achievers this year, parents like me received a communication folder with requirements from school.

Water Bottle
Snacks
Extra T-Shirt and Pants
Towels
Insect Repellent

I took serious notes on everything ESPECIALLY insect repellent, because I understand the Philippines (a tropical country) is no stranger to Dengue outbreaks. I watch them on news and read them on social media posts every single day and I know my son (and children in general) are more liable to get it because they are the ones who are more exposed than any of us in the Family.

Dengue carrying mosquitos can lurk him on his way to school.

Inside the classrooms

And most especially at school playgrounds.

But who can say no to that happy little face during playtime?

Then I realized, we as parents, especially moms love to go online to search for information, symptoms and even cure. The real question is, are we really rightfully informed? Who should we really trust?

With all the information available easily online, I believe parents should first trust their instinct and for the rest? To trust in experts in medicine. And thankfully, to make information more straightforward and easier to understand, there is a movement called Allied Against Dengue movement founded by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in partnership with the Department of Health and Philippine Pharmacists Association to help educate us Filipinos on this mosquito-borne disease.

DENGUE is actually a number ONE health concern in Southeast Asia and YOU should always be concern and arm yourself with knowledge to keep you and our family safe! Here are some facts about Dengue in the Philippines:

To start off, 80% in the Philippines *mistakenly believe that antibiotics are needed to manage dengue symptoms" and only a low 28% Filipino respondents are aware that paracetamol is the only recommended medication for dengue fever management as stated by the World Health Organization (WHO). I am surprised because I am part of that 80%
Beyond management, survey findings also uncovered that there is still a struggle to identify the symptoms of dengue in the Philippines. Only 19% know that dengue can be detected on the first day of infection and that majority would only visit the doctor when fever persists up to 3 days. 7 Ironically, more than half of parents are confident that they would be able to diagnose their children with dengue, 8 which may lead to misdiagnosis and place children in jeopardy.
But on a positive note, the survey revealed that 95% of Filipinos are interested to learn more about dengue, and almost all parents feel schools should play a role in educating students about the disease. Initiated by a coalition of 12 organizations, the AAD launched its pilot educational campaign in Indonesia in 2015, followed by Malaysia and the Philippines. More than 11,500 healthcare professionals and pharmacists joined efforts to empower and educate more than seven million patients on disease prevention and management across digital and media channels, and on-ground activations.

Active members of AAD, alongside GSK in the country, are the Department of Health (DOH) and Mercury Drug Corporation. Each organization provides their expertise in support of defeating dengue burden in the Philippines. And I myself, as a Blogger is doing my part in disseminating information for all of us to do our part and join forces to drive awareness about this fastest spreading viral disease in the world!