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BILIS Campaign: DOH Aims a Rabies-Free Philippines by 2020

When I was seven years old, we had a very playful dog named Bambi. One day while I was playing with her, she unintentionally bit me in the arm. The bite marks were bleeding that’s why my Dad immediately washed the dog bite injury with soap and water and took me to the doctor and got injected with an anti-tetanus vaccine. It’s a precautionary measure just in case our dog has rabies. But of course, Bambi did not show any sign of rabies infection and it’s safe to assume that she’s clean because nothing changed from her behavior after the incident, she’s still our playful Bambi that I loved.

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That experience did not, in any way, instill a fear of dogs in me. In fact, I grew up with different breeds because my dad is a dog lover. After Bambi, we had two dalmatians, two labradors, 1 golden retriever, and several azkals. I learned how to bond with them and did not experience any aggressive behavior from these dogs.

But despite the fact that all our dogs lived with us inside the house and I can say they were all clean, the problem about rabies in our country is something we should not take for granted. According to an article by Sheila Crisostomo as published on The Philippine Star March of 2015, 300 to 400 Filipinos die of rabies every year, with dog bites accounting for 84 percent of human rabies cases. It was also estimated that of the nine million dogs across the country, only one million are vaccinated against rabies.

Rabies is a fatal disease transmitted to humans through animal bites or even scratches, most commonly by dogs. It is vaccine preventable, but once infection begins, death is inevitable.

This is why the Department of Health (DOH), in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture (DA) led the celebration of World Rabies Day underscoring the theme: Rabies: Educate. Vaccinate. Eliminate., which emphasizes the two crucial actions that communities can do to prevent rabies. It also reflects the global target to eliminate all human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030.

ROMMEL ABUDA - GSK Public Affairs & Communication, DR. EMELINDA L. LOPEZ - OIC Animal Health & Welfare Division, DR. PAULYN JEAN B. ROSELL-UBIAL - Secretary of Health, DR. ERIC TAYAG - Spokesperson DOH, DR. CHRISTINE DIZON - GSK Medical Director for Vaccines

ROMMEL ABUDA – GSK Public Affairs & Communication, DR. EMELINDA L. LOPEZ – OIC Animal Health & Welfare Division, DR. PAULYN JEAN B. ROSELL-UBIAL – Secretary of Health, DR. ERIC TAYAG – Spokesperson DOH, DR. CHRISTINE DIZON – GSK Medical Director for Vaccines

“Rabies is considered a neglected disease that is 100% fatal but 100% preventable. Effective and safe medicines have been available for decades to prevent the disease in humans and animals. None of these deaths should have occurred since we have the necessary interventions to prevent rabies such as: (1) promotion of responsible pet ownership, (2) early consultation when bitten by animals and (3) timely administration of vaccines,” Health Secretary Paulyn Jean B. Rosell-Ubial explained.

From 2010-2015, 1,463 deaths were recorded by DOH from human rabies and 180 deaths from human rabies were noted from January 1 to September 24 2016.

A total of 783,879 animal bites across the country were registered in 2015. This is 10% higher than in 2014 when the total number of animal bites was 683,802 cases. The increase in the number of reported cases is attributed to the improved surveillance and services which enabled bite cases to seek treatment at established public Animal Bite Treatment Centers (ABTC) and/or private Animal Bite Centers. As of March 2016, a total of 486 ABTCs are located all over the country, 32 of which are in Metro Manila.

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As part of the rabies elimination campaign, a total of 41 provinces/areas were declared ‘rabies-free’ by DOH and DA, Bureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI) from 2008-2016.

The DOH, through the National Rabies Prevention and Control Program (NRPCP) in partnership with different agencies and local government units continue to implement strategies and activities to respond to this public health problem. One strategy is the provision of Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) in all DOH-recognized ABTCs/ABCs, and Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) especially for high risk individuals and students in high incidence zones. Meanwhile, PhilHealth through its Animal Bite Treatment Package defrays the cost of PEP treatment among all qualified members.

The DOH has lined up various advocacy campaigns to disseminate information about the illness and how to prevent it. The DOH also encourages pet owners to have household pets vaccinated at designated time periods. Lastly, the public is warned against approaching stray and possibly rabid animals and is reminded to immediately go to the nearest ABTCs/ABCs when needed.

“Maging responsible. Kung ikaw ay may alagang hayop, pabakunahan ito agad laban sa rabies. Kung ikaw naman ay nakagat ng hayop, huwag itong ipagsawalang bahala, pumunta agad sa pinakamalapit na animal bite treatment center upang ito’y mabigyan ng kaukulang lunas o bakuna laban sa rabies.” Secretary Ubial concluded.

Here are Frequently Asked Questions about Rabies:

Question  
What is rabies?

 

Rabies is a virus that attacks the central nervous system that can lead to a serious illness that can lead to death if not addressed immediately1

 

How is rabies transmitted?

 

Rabies is most commonly transmitted through bites of rabid animals (cat, dog etc). Rabies can also be transmitted through licks of rabid animals on existing scratches and wounds of individuals.1

 

What are the symptoms of rabies?

 

·        Confused state of mind1

·        Irritable and anxious 1

·        Hydrophobic1

·        Abnormal increase in salivation1

How long does it take for symptoms to appear?

 

While the infected individual might seem healthy, the virus may already be traveling towards the brain. Symptoms of infection may occur weeks or months after rabies exposure. 1

 

How serious is rabies as a public health burden in the Philippines?

 

·        Rabies is fatal2

·        The Philippines is a rabies endemic country2

·        200 bite victims died due to rabies infection in 20132

·        40% of bite victims fall under the age 15 years and below2

What do I do to prevent rabies infection?

 

·        Treatment should be started as early as possible after exposure, but in no case should it be denied to exposed persons whatever time interval has elapsed.3

·        Ensure complete compliance of the full treatment course. The rabies victim may die should the individual fail to complete the course of the treatment1

What is the National Rabies Prevention and Control Committee (NRPCC)?

 

The NRPCC is a multi-agency effort to control and eliminate rabies in the country by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and Department of Health (DOH), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Education (DepEd) in coordination with other Government Organizations (GOs), Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and People’s Organizations (POs). 2

 

What are actions being taken by the national government to prevent rabies?

 

·        Human Vaccination: Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) and Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) led by the National Rabies Prevention & Control Program (NRPCP) 2

·        Database of dog bites led by the NRPCP2

·        Health Promotion – including world rabies day & rabies month celebration, massive health information using Tri-Media channels, development of disease awareness materials & integration of rabies program in the school curriculum led by the NRPCC2

·        Dog Vaccination led by the DA-BAI2

·        Dog Population Management led by the DA-BAI2

·        Central Database System led by the DA-BAI2

·          Responsible Pet Ownership led by the NRPCC2Integration of Anti-Rabies Instructions  to the K to 12 Curriculum by the DepEd

As part of this advocacy and in line with the observation of World Rabies Day, the BILIS campaign was also launched last October 7, 2016 at the ACCELER8 Event Space in Makati City.

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BILIS is a disease awareness campaign aligned to the Rabies Free Philippines Advocacy. The goal of the campaign is to increase awareness on proper treatment, management and prevention of rabies infection. This tagline communicates a sense of urgency to fight rabies immediately. BILIS would stand for the 3 simple steps on how to manage animal bite exposure.

·        BI Bilisan  ang paghugas ng sugat2

·        LI Linisin  ng alcohol2

·        S Sumangguni  sa doktor ukol sa tamang pag-gamot ng sugat2

References:
1. “Frequently Asked Questions on Rabies.” World Health Organization Regional Office for South-East Asia. New Delhi, India. 2013.
2. “National Rabies Prevention and Control Program, Manual of Operations.” Department of Health. Manila, Philippines. 2012. ISBN 978-971-0569-33-5
3. Rabies Fact Sheet, Media Center, World Health Organization, March 2016.

Filipino Dog Whisperer Lester Zapanta and his famous dog A’quiya demonstrated to the media people who attended the launch some practical things to do when we encounter an aggressive dog.

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In a dog’s point of view, Lester pointed out how these pets respond to human behaviour.

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In line with their vision of a Rabies-Free Philippines by 2020, the Department of Health (DOH) and Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI) are encouraging all dog owners to have their pets injected with anti-rabies vaccine (this is actually free, there’s only a minimal amount for registration around P50 to P100).

The people from DOH, DA-BAI, Dog aficionados and the members of the media took a pledge in taking a proactive stance against rabies through consultation with doctors, Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), and Dog Vaccination; and to promote awareness information in empowering Filipinos to take action against rabies and achieve a Rabies-Free Philippines by 2020.

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