Romero, Kyreen Marinelle L.

A51 - GED104

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease and it primarily affects the tropical and subtropical

parts of the world. Mild dengue fever poses flu-like symptoms accompanied by high fever, while the more

severe form of the fever, also known as the dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF), may cause serious bleeding

as well as a shock, or a sudden drop in blood pressure and may even go as far as death (Mayo Clinic,

2020). In 2021, dengue cases dropped significantly as compared to the year before, having 21,478 cases

in the first four months of 202, which is a 56% decrease from the year before which had 49,135 cases.

According to the Department of Health (DOH), authorities continued to intensify their measures amidst

the COVID-19 pandemic. It was said that the cases began to greatly fluctuate since 2018 but had a

resurgence in 2019 where a national dengue epidemic was declared (Gonzales, 2021). This was also the

time where the vaccine, Dengvaxia, circulated as a school vaccination program. Dengvaxia is a dengue

vaccine created by Sanofi and was first tested in the Philippines in 2016. The country was involved in the

entire process of the clinical development of the vaccine and was also the first to gain access to it.

Controversy circulating the vaccine arose when deaths of children were linked to the vaccine after they

received their first doses. Since Dengvaxia was the only approved vaccine option and despite these

allegations, the government still considered reintroducing the vaccine to its people as long as they have

already been exposed to dengue previously (Lo, 2019). Aside from this, in 2013, the late senator Miriam

Defensor-Santiago proposed a bill during the outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome

(MERS-COV). The bill was meant to strengthen the national response to health emergencies yet up until

this year, 2021, the bill has yet to be published and put into action (Terrazola, 2021). Although the

government implemented plans to stop the outbreak such as the enhanced 4S strategy, the way they

rushed the implementation of the vaccine despite knowing full well that there were only a few trials done
as well as not implementing a bill that could’ve helped in preparing the country for situations like this is

evidence that there was negligence on the government’s part.

With the continuous outbreaks of dengue in the Philippines, the Department of Health initiated

numerous strategies to be able to control and prevent the continuous spread of the disease. One example is

the “4 o’clock habit” vector control program in which it asks its people to collaborate with their LGUs in

order to search and destroy possible mosquito breeding sites at 4 pm since this is when the

dengue-carrying mosquitos are most active. Aside from this, there is also the enhanced 4S strategy in

which it also implements the search and destroy tactic used in the 4 o’clock habit program but also

includes the self-protection measures, seek early consultation, and lastly support fogging/spraying

(Padilla, 2021) In looking at the programs created, it is quite evident that these are more reliable on the

cooperation of the people rather than the work of the government. They rely on an individual to abide by

this program yet there is no certain way to keep tabs on them as well as see if they are really following

through with the regime. In our time now, amidst the COVID pandemic, I think that it is a similar

situation with how the government only relied on the people to wear face shields and face masks without

actually coming up with a proper solution to prevent it. The government should focus on creating a

system where it can monitor its people when it comes to illnesses and diseases especially if they are

infectious.

In 2016, Dengvaxia was first launched in the country since it was involved in the clinical

development of the vaccine. The country became the first in the world to gain access to the vaccine and

had hopes of vaccinating millions of students. Later on, the immunization programme was suspended as

Sanofi decided to change its label that restricted the vaccine to only those who have already been exposed

to the virus since those without the exposure were vulnerable to more serious infections. In February of

2018, the Public Attorney’s Office filed a lawsuit against the executives of Sanofi, Zuellig Pharma, and

the government after claiming that a 10-year-old died after receiving the vaccine. They believed that there
was enough evidence to indict them with “reckless imprudence resulting in homicide” since they were

the ones who facilitated the rushed approval of Dengvaxia and its distribution to the schoolchildren

(Arkin, 2019). It is quite evident that there is negligence on the government’s part with how they rushed

the approval of the dengue vaccine despite it not being fully tested yet. Instead of helping, they only

induced mass hysteria with how the parents were made to believe that their children were going to die

because of it. Not only does it remove the trust of the people to the government but it also removes their

trust in vaccines as well. In our current condition, getting vaccines against COVID nowadays is certainly

a must, yet there are still some individuals that are wary and are avoiding them. This could be because of

their stands and beliefs but it also could be the result in distrust of government-issued vaccines. The

government should be able to present verified and thorough research on the vaccines they are

administering. They should also always be cautious of what they release to the public and ensure that

what they are giving out has already been tested and will have the best output for its people.

It has already been almost 8 years since Sen. Santiago created the Senate bill entitled “Pandemic

and All-Hazards Preparedness Act” which aimed to prepare the country for health emergencies as well as

strengthen the national response to these situations. Although it was initially created for the MERS-COV

outbreak, the bill itself would have been useful for the Dengue outbreak as well. If it was able to serve its

purpose, then it could’ve made the prevention of the spreading of the virus easier and faster. Since it also

aimed to create a Medical Reserve Corps which included professional volunteers, it would have made

treatment easier as well. Just like the Dengue outbreak, it would have been useful to us now during the

COVID pandemic with how it would have made the testings and controlling of the virus much easier as

compared to now. Although the bill would have been useful in many ways, the fact that it is still not

published and put into use now only raises concern that the government is not focusing on health-related

bills in the time of a national health emergency. It shows negligence on their part as this bill could have

really helped the country yet it still is not put into action whilst other bills are being approved when they

are not necessary for this time. The government should prioritize bills such as this so that the country
would know what to do in these situations. They should also prioritize health bills considering how public

health and safety are their number one priority.

These pandemics and epidemics are able to test the reliability and responsibility of the

government since it is able to bring out its intelligence and priorities concerning public health and

welfare. With how the government responded to these pandemics and epidemics, although they were able

to provide some sort of prevention plan, it is quite obvious that they aren’t enough and that they should be

able to do better with their resources. Their negligence when it comes to administering these plans is

what’s preventing them from bringing out the best for the country. They should be able to conduct

thorough and proper research when it comes to finding and creating solutions that would be beneficial to

the public health and safety. Not only that but they should also take their time in administering vaccines to

avoid recurrences of their past mistakes. Overall, they should learn more from the past and be able to fix

whatever mistake they make as well as be able to be held accountable for their actions.
REFERENCES:

Arkin, F. (2021). Dengue vaccine fiasco leads to criminal charges for researcher in the

Philippines. Science.org.

https://www.science.org/content/article/dengue-vaccine-fiasco-leads-criminal-charges-res

earcher-philippines

Gonzales, C. (2021, June). Dengue cases, deaths declining significantly in 2021 — DOH.

INQUIRER.net.

https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/1447414/dengue-cases-deaths-declining-significantly-in-202

1-doh

Lo, C. (2019, December 16). The dengue vaccine dilemma. Pharmaceutical-Technology.com;

Pharmaceutical Technology.

https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/features/dangvaxia-philippines/

Mayo Clinic (2020). Dengue fever - Symptoms and causes.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/dengue-fever/symptoms-causes/syc-20353078

Padilla, T. (2021, July 7). COVID-19 lessons can help in country’s fight vs dengue -

BusinessWorld Online. BusinessWorld Online.

https://www.bworldonline.com/covid-19-lessons-can-help-in-countrys-fight-vs-dengue/

‌Terrazola, V. (2021, June 14). “Political prophet” Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago remembered.

Manila Bulletin.

https://mb.com.ph/2021/06/14/political-prophet-sen-miriam-defensor-santiago-remember

ed/

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