TWO years and counting.
Bohol anti-rabies advocates and Boholanos has a reason to pick October 8, 2010 as a day of celebration: the day
completes a two year mark when health authorities have not found any rabies case in human or canines involved in bite
cases all over the province’s 47 towns and a city.
The last reported canines rabie case was in October 8, 2008, or exactly two years ago, shared Bohol veterinarian Dr.
Stella Marie Lapiz during the recent Kapihan sa PIA.
At the weekly forum aired live over DyTR and broadcast from the PIA at K of C Drive in this city, Dr. Lapiz said that while
Bohol may be declared as the next rabies free province in the country if the zero rabies case is sustained for three years,
floating in the horizon however is a bigger goal, to be declared internationally as a model for its community based efforts
against rabies.
According to the Department of Health, absence of human and canine rabies occurrence in a place for three consecutive
years merits a declaration as rabies free.
To date, the island province of Siquijor has kept its citation as rabies free.
For Dr. Lapiz, while Bohol has been using international standards in its moritoring and evaluation for its rabies program,
snagging an international recognition may not be that distant goal.
Keeping her hands close to her chest, Dr Lapiz said all of the achievements so far, she credits to the man Boholano
barangay volunteers, communities and the international and national donors whose funding support has kept the
program yapping.
Bohol used to be ranked number 4 and number 3 among the country’s rabies watchlist in 2005 and 2006.
Eversince, the provincial veterinarian said the help they get from these institutions and sectors have pushed for the 2
year milestone.
Since 2006, Bohol launched its Provincial Anti Rabies Prevention and Elimination Program with an initial local government
fund of P1M, national government support fund and some P7.5M from a non government organization partner called
Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC).
According to Dr. May Elizabeth Miranda of the GARC, their organization got interested in counter-part funding the Bohol
programs as they belived that Bohol would be in a better position to show to the world that rabies is preventable, and
that community mobilization against rabies is one effective and efficient tool.
An organization into helping countries fight rabies, GARC’s Dr. Miranda said they are excited of the developments in
Bohol as it may put the province in the limelight being a world model for community based rabies control, which their
organization can share.
Owing to the need to make the program as integretaed and as massive to be provincewide, the BRPE council led
by the governor engaged communities by institutionalizing the Bantay Rabies sa Barangay who will be doing the
dirty job of dog surveys, registration, vaccination and dog related incident arbitration in their local levels. (PIABohol)