Government doctors launched here yesterday the Department of Health’s
(DOH’s) “Ligtas Tigdas” vaccination drive to stamp out measles with an
urgent call for an end to the common rural practices in addressing the
sometimes deadly illness.
Dr. Hector Beñas and Dr. Eduardo Posadas, the provincial and city
health officer, respectively, called on mothers to take advantage of the
free measles and polio vaccinations launched here and in other parts of
the country.
Beñas made a call to the public to seek professional medical help
when their child suffers from symptoms of measles and discouraged them
from applying traditional treatments that oftentimes aggravate the
patient’s condition.
“We do not have a scientific proof that they (measles-infected patients) were cured by these primitive remedies,” Beñas said.
Beñas said Gov. Manuel Ortega has ordered the massive measles
vaccination in La Union in line with the Ligtas-Tigdas activity and
encouraged mothers to go to the rural health centers immediately when
their children show symptoms of the infection, such as skin rashes and
on-and-off fever.
In provinces, most people still believe in the medical myth of
rubbing grilled red shallots on patients and then spoon-feeding them
with the yolk of hard-boiled egg, claiming that the rashes would come on
the skin and face and conclude that it will cure the patient.
The patient is also prevented from being exposed to the air and
taking a bath until the rashes subside. The belief is that the patient
would die if the rashes did not sprout from the skin and have infected
the internal organs.
“It is a dangerous method, the patient may suffer from infections as
we all know, measles include fever with coughs and colds,” Posadas
added.
Posadas said that the traditional cure may lead to respiratory illnesses like bronchopneumonia if not checked by doctors.
Health officials listed a total of 103, 488 measles-rubella target
population while polio vaccination has a total target population of 121,
486 in La Union and this city.
