ADIOS MOSQUITO CAMPAIGN IS LAUNCHED IN MÉXICO

Adiós Mosquito Campaign is launched in México

The Mexican Red Cross launched the 'Adiós Mosquito' campaign with the aim of promoting community actions to prevent dengue in the most affected states. In collaboration with the Argentine organization Edupas and SC Johnson, the institution is already actively working in areas impacted by the proliferation of the Aedes Aegypti mosquito, transmitter of this viral disease, prioritizing the most vulnerable populations.

During the presentation event, Carlos Freaner Figueroa, national president of the Mexican Red Cross, pointed out that with 500 delegations and more than 20 thousand collaborators, the institution has the infrastructure to access the most remote communities.

He highlighted that there are 500 delegations in the country, “there is almost no place  in the republic that is not close to a Red Cross delegation or base, a place where our volunteers can travel to carry a message of prevention, health, and to cheer up". “You have to go to the mountains, you have to go to the fields, you have to go to the fishing areas, you have to go where this insect normally reproduces and causes a lot of damage, where sometimes health aid does not reach,” Indian.

Luis Manuel Hernández, vice president of SCJohnson, explained that the increase in cases caused by the Aedes aegypti mosquito is due to radical changes in the climate, since "we came from an extreme drought where we did not have water and the population had to store it," but he stated that to this need must be added “education to take care of the measures to prevent these impacts”, derived from the generation of breeding sites. He also adds that this rainy season is more aggressive than in the past and an active hurricane season is expected.

The program has already started in the states of Oaxaca, Tabasco and Guerrero as they are considered the most vulnerable, but it will also reach other entities, including Sonora and Chihuahua, due to the presence of cases in practically the entire republic.

In the state of Tabasco, training was carried out for 62 replicators of the “Goodbye Mosquito” campaign from July 20 to 23. Volunteers from the Mexican Red Cross, community brigade members and health personnel from the municipalities of Jonuta, Teapa, Tacotalpa and Jalapa were trained there. Likewise, 26 volunteers and community brigade members were trained to be replicators of the campaign in communities vulnerable to the Aedes Aegypti vector.

Personnel from the Health Jurisdictions of Teapa, Jalapa and Tacotalpa were also trained, delivering replica kits that they will use in their health promotion activities. In total, 36 health workers responsible for the training and education of health personnel who provide care to the public received the training.

After the training with community brigade members and volunteers, a community activity was carried out in Manuel Buelta y Rayón, Teapa, where the trained personnel were able to replicate the knowledge with 50 people from the population, holding a community fair to practice 3 activities of the campaign: true and false game, images of everyday life and community game.

For its part, training was provided in Oaxaca on August 13. There, 17 replicators of the “Goodbye Mosquito” campaign were trained for volunteers of the Mexican Red Cross, delivering a total of 50 replica kits that will be used during various community activities.

After the training, the “Community Fair” was held in the community of San Jerónimo Yahuiche, Santa María Atzompa. During the activity, the replicators trained in the morning were able to replicate the knowledge with 30 people from the community, having a very good acceptance of the information, due to the high incidence of cases in the state.

In the state of Guerrero, between September 1 and 7, training was carried out for 50 replicators of the “Adiós Mosquito” campaign for volunteers from the Mexican Red Cross and health personnel from the municipalities of Coyuca de Benítez and Acapulco, Warrior. There, 30 volunteers were trained to be replicators of the campaign in communities vulnerable to the Aedes Aegypti vector.

Staff from the Health Centers in the communities of Ejido Viejo, El Conchero, Yetla and Barra de Coyuca were also trained, delivering replica kits that they will use in their health promotion activities. In total, 20 health workers from different public service shifts received the training, whose reach in their locations is estimated at 5,000 people.

As Guerrero is the state with the highest incidence of dengue cases in Mexico, the kits are designed to provide clear and timely information, which allows it to be well received by the replicators and they believe that it can benefit families and be replicated mainly in schools. and health houses.