Provincial health office leads celebration of World Rabies Day

With the theme,“Rabies: Vaccinate to Eliminate,” the Provincial Health Office (PHO) of the Provincial Government of Camarines Sur celebrates the World Rabies Day by conducting a symposium on rabies awareness among the 7th and 8th graders of Jose De Villa National High School in Maguiring, Calabanga on September 27, 2019.

According to the data from the Department of Health, 200 to 300 Filipinos die each year because of rabies. As one of the primary health focuses of the provincial government, the activity aimed to educate and raise awareness among the youth on the importance of rabies vaccination as majority of the participants are pet owners.

Among the speakers are Marianne Silerio, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and Erwin Bico, Registered Nurse of the Local Government Unit of Calabanga. They talked about the signs and symptoms of having rabies, how animals acquire rabies, what to do in case of animal bite, and rabies prevention and control program.

The municipality of Calabanga has a record of 91 cases of animal bite and 1 death due to rabies this year. Over 400 7th and 8th graders were chosen to participate in the activity as according to the data, fifteen-year-olds and below are the usual victims of animal bite.

The Provincial Health Office is also planning to conduct the same activity in different municipalities pursuing parents as participants.