BY PEDRO MONTES DE OCA
The News
The Secretary of Health gave precise instructions to Mexico regarding the mosquitos that transmit the virus Zika, so that the country can carry out a variety of action to reduce the risk of contagion, above all in pregnant women.
The office said that they are passing out free mosquito repellent to fight the Aedes Aegypti mosquito in San Luis Potosí, where in the next few days 3,300 will be distributed to the pregnant women living in high-risk areas.
The Secretary of Health asked that women in stages of pregnancy and those who suspect they may be pregnant wear shirts or blouses with long sleeves and pants, and that they use mosquito nets on their doors, windows and over their beds.
As part of these actions, the state’s Secretary of Health will perform basic clean-up work, with an emphasis on the municipalities that have a history of cases of dengue, are located in the Huasteca region and the middle of the state.
From January to this date San Luis Potosí has carried out the following preventative actions: 76 school visits, seven market visits, 70 recreational site visits and 70 to auto mechanic shops. Representatives have carried out 21,360 house visits to promote the “Wash, Cover, Turn, and Throw Out” campaign.
In a parallel manner, they have performed 2,200 herbicide actions in rivers, collecting more than 2,000 tires and 225 tons of junk.
Despite these actions, the collaboration of the general population is important, which has led the state’s Secretary of Health to ask the citizenry to keep their houses free of potential breeding grounds through activities like washing and scrubbing with a brush and soap their water tanks, cisterns, animal troughs and any container that carries water. They should keep other receptacles closed; turn buckets upside down, cover bathtubs, pots and other places that store water and are not being used regularly.
It is recommended that all citizens throw out any bottles, tires and containers they are not currently using and that could serve as mosquito breeding grounds; scrub walls with soap and water, keep houses clean and free of undergrowth.
It’s important to keep the public informed, especially since there is no current medicine that can keep one from contracting the Zika virus, Chikungunya or dengue — the best way to protect oneself is by following the rules of basic sanitation.
