Illustrative image (Source: VNA)
A meeting was held in Tam Ky city, the central province of Quang Nam to respond to the World Rabies Day 2015 (September 28).
The event, held by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the provincial People’s Committee, was attended by representatives from the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Vietnam, ministries and sectors and the provincial authorities
According to WHO, rabies is one of the world’s oldest animal diseases which causes the deaths of over 50,000 people annually.
WHO recommended that people, who are bitten by pets, need to be vaccinated as soon as possible to protect them against rabies.
Vietnam has recorded 50 deaths from rabies so far this year,
According to the Department of Preventive Medicine, the number of fatalities caused by rabies last year was 66 nationwide, the lowest for the last 10 years.
Last year, more than 399,000 people had vaccinations after being bitten by dogs suspected of being rabid, an increase of 11 percent over 2013.
According to experts, vaccination of dogs can effectively eliminate rabies. Vietnam has about 10 million dogs, and at least 70 percent of them must be fully vaccinated.
The meeting presents a message on the need to raise public awareness of the danger of the disease and precautionary measures.
Vietnam is striving to become one of the leading ASEAN countries in completely eliminating rabies by 2020.-VNA
