19 students in the dormitory of Ho Chi Minh City National University were hospitalized one after another with abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea, suspected to be due to food poisoning.
On the morning of May 9, BS.CK2 Ho Thanh Phong, Head of General Planning Department, Thu Duc Regional General Hospital, said that the students went to the emergency room from 10:00 p.m. on May 8 to dawn this morning. Most of them had stomach pain, some had vomiting and diarrhea after dinner.
“None of the cases showed serious symptoms such as dehydration or low blood pressure,” the doctor said. Currently, the patient’s condition is stable. Suspecting that the patient had food poisoning, the hospital reported the incident to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health. The city’s Center for Disease Control and authorities are contacting patients and investigating epidemiology. It’s unclear what the students ate.
Mr. Lai The Tuan, Head of the Dormitory General Department of Ho Chi Minh City National University, said the above students ate and drank at a canteen in dormitory B area before unusual symptoms appeared. The dormitory management center currently requires the canteen to stop operating and maintain the status quo to serve the investigation. Authorities took samples here to test to find the cause.
The canteen at the dormitory is organized by a catering service company. This company has a certificate of food safety eligibility, according to Mr. Tuan. The company does not directly cook at the dormitory but only distributes food.
A doctor records emergency patient information at a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Image: Quynh Tran
Last week, 16 students from 4 elementary schools in Thu Duc City went to Le Van Thinh Hospital for emergency treatment, suspected of food poisoning, most of them ate sushi from street vendors sold in front of the school gate.
Recently, many localities have recorded cases of collective poisoning. After eating a feast of goat blood pudding in Thai Binh, a man died on May 5, and 18 other people had fever, digestive disorders, and abdominal pain. 560 people were poisoned after eating bread in Long Khanh City, Dong Nai, including two seriously ill children who are undergoing intensive treatment at the hospital.
Experts say that the current hot weather with prolonged high humidity is a favorable environment for bacteria to grow, accelerating the process of food decomposition. Meanwhile, many people have incorrect habits of preparing, cooking, and preserving food; Food left outside in hot air for too long poses a great risk of poisoning.
People need to raise awareness of preventing food poisoning by eating cooked food and drinking boiled water. Eat immediately after cooking because the longer food is left out, the more dangerous it is. Carefully store cooked foods. If you suspect the food is spoiled or contaminated, it should be thrown away. Avoid cross-contamination between cooked and raw foods with dirty surfaces, and do not place raw and cooked foods close to each other. Wash your hands before preparing and after each interruption to do something else.