A STATE of emergency has been declared in Talaingod, Davao del Norte due to a diarrhea outbreak that has affected more than 200 residents since September 2022.
Municipal Health Officer Dr. Jeoffrey Mambucon said the municipality declared a state of emergency on September 28, 2022, due to diarrhea affecting residents in the barangays of Talaingod.
He said the reason for the diarrhea is due to the residents' water source.
“Labaw na og ting-ulan, tungod sa ilahang water source, kay ilahang naandan biskan asa moinom, ilahang tubig ibutang lang sa may balete unya naa nay mga uma na diha (The diarrhea outbreak is due to their water source. They are used to store or get water anywhere. They would store water near the balete, where it could be contaminated [when not sealed properly]),” Mambucon said on October 14, 2022.
Mambucon said some of those affected by the diarrhea outbreak were also cholera cases wherein four have already died.
“Tong September 22, naa gyud naabot sa akoa nga mura og kalabira, lalom ang certain eyeballs, lalom ang mata, severely dehydrated and dead on arrival gyud (On September 22, we have received a patient who was already in a severe condition. The patient was severly dehydrated and declared dead on arrival),” Mambucon said.
The latest death is a two-year-old boy from Sitio Damuloan, Barangay Palma Gil. He added that they have not recorded all the cases yet since they are having a hard time tracing and visiting the sitios.
“This is an underestimation kay lisod gyud kaayo sakaon ang mga sitios,then gamay ra ang team, sa amoang LGU (Local Government Unit) isa ra akong nurse, then ako lang ang doktor pud, ang midwife tulo lang pud (because it is not easy to reach these sitios. I also have a small team of one nurse, three midwives, and me),” he said.
Mambucon said that there are also residents who transfer from one sitio to another, which could spread the disease. According to the World Health Organization, diarrhea "infection is spread through contaminated food or drinking-water, or from person-to-person as a result of poor hygiene."
“It's very infectious, kaning atoang mga kaigsoonang mga lumad kung naay magsakit moadto sa pikas, maong pwedeng maka-infect sa uban (Our lumad brothers and sisters would transfer from one place to another place, which could infect others),” Mambucon said.
He said they are educating the lumad in the area for them to understand the risks of diarrhea like death.
Mambucon said it's a challenge for them to control the situation right now, but he said that the Department of Health Davao Region and their LGU have already extended their help. KSD