Monkeypox awareness campaign set up as 44 cases confirmed in Ireland – Irish Examiner
An awareness programme on monkeypox is running across pubs, clubs, and a popular dating app with advocates hoping this will stop the virus taking hold in Ireland.
Up to July 2, there were 44 cases confirmed here, with seven admitted to hospital. More cases are expected by public health doctors.
Meanwhile, the WHO announced a 77% weekly increase in the number of confirmed monkeypox cases globally, with the total now standing at 6,027.
Director of communications with Gay Health Network (GHN) Padraig Burke said the response here had been “impressive” as advocacy groups partner with the HSE to get the message out.
Striking posters in pink and black have gone up in pub bathrooms in a similar approach to that used by the Covid-19 yellow-alert campaign.
Trained peer volunteers from MPower have been answering people’s questions at events and nights out. Social media advertising includes direct messages to users of dating app Grindr.
All 27,000 attendees at the Pride Block Party at the end of June were emailed about the risks.
The virus has mainly been identified among men who identify as gay or bisexual, or other men who have sex with men.
Healthcare workers have been infected and the WHO said this week that a small number of young children are household contacts.
It has been suggested here and internationally that higher awareness of sexual health among gay men is leading to earlier detection.
“Monkeypox rashes can resemble some sexually transmitted infections, including herpes and syphilis, which may explain why cases in this outbreak are being picked up at sexual health clinics,” the campaign says.
The campaign involves GHN, MPower, the Health Protection and Surveillance Centre (HPSC), Sexual Health and Crisis Pregnancy Programme, and the HSE.
“This includes the development of key messaging that is informative but does not stigmatise,” Mr Burke said.
Public health consultant with the HPSC Dr Natasha Rafter said: “So far the numbers in Ireland have been small.
She said it was important people know the symptoms.
The WHO said two further deaths in African countries were reported, bringing fatalities to three in this outbreak, although over 80% of the cases turned up in Europe.
Monkeypox has now been found in 59 countries, although 10 countries have not reported new cases for more than three weeks, which is the maximum incubation period.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday he remained “concerned by the scale and spread of the virus”.
He said testing remained a challenge in some areas.
The WHO’s Dr Rosamund Lewis said children had caught monkeypox. Data shows 0.1% of cases are in those aged under 17.
“So far about one-third of them in children are under the age of 10, and half of those in children under the age of five,” she said.
“As for older ones, 18 or 19, the mode of transmission is an open question but for younger children one would assume that would be from exposure in the household setting.”