Stating that dengue was on the decline in the State, Health Minister C. Vijaya Baskar has asked citizens to visit the nearest hospital immediately, if they contracted fever.
He was inspecting the fever clinic set up at Government Mohan Kumaramangalam Medical College and Hospital here.
He said that to prevent dengue, State has taken steps in the last one week.
Sporadic cases were reported from Salem, Tiruchi, Tiruvannamalai, and Chennai.
The Minister said that though controlling fever in Salem district was a challenge, effective steps taken by the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine resulted in decline in fever cases in 16 of the 20 blocks.
The Minister said that exclusive fever clinics will be started in all the district hospitals. He said that interaction with patients at Salem GH revealed that after suffering from fever, they visited local doctor on the first day and nearest hospital on the third day and visited the Salem GH only on the sixth day.
In case of fever, they should immediately visit the registered medical practitioner or the government hospital, he added.
The Minister said that government will not allow any death due to fever and added that awareness among those in towns was better whereas villagers still depend on local medical shops.
He said that a meeting of medical shop owners will be held on October 2. He said that cases will be registered against shop owners if they sell medicines without prescription.
“If breeding place for mosquitoes is found on a premises, action will be taken against the administration”, he said. He asked private clinics to refer patients to government hospitals immediately.
When asked about officials visiting a place only after a death was reported, the Minister said that dengue being a communicable disease, it can be prevented only by source reduction and creating an awareness among the people.
