Accra: The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has confirmed six new cases of Monkeypox (Mpox), increasing the total to 91. In the latest update, the service indicated that two patients were currently on admission under close monitoring with no deaths. The GHS said it remained vigilant as it actively monitors infections in all 16 regions through its surveillance system to prevent further spread.
According to Ghana News Agency, Mrs. Mabel Asafo, Acting Director of Health Promotion at GHS, in an earlier virtual media engagement, indicated that the service was engaging in Social Behavioural Change (SBC) activities in the various communities, schools, and markets across the country to help prevent further spread. She emphasized that awareness creation among the public while ensuring adherence to safety protocols would go a long way to contain the disease.
Mrs. Asafo urged the media to support the service to debunk misinformation and disinformation about the disease among the populace. She warned that the inability to debunk misinformation and rumors would create panic, spread of the disease, confusion, and lack of trust in institutions, which could have dire consequences on the economy. She appealed to the media to help keep the public informed through announcements, leveraging social media platforms, and assisting in fact-checking.
Furthermore, Mrs. Asafo encouraged the Ghana Education Service (GES) to ensure that school children did not share plates and clothes to prevent the spread, adding that key messages had been sent to the GES to further educate students. Identifiable groups, including market women, persons with disabilities, and other groups, had been contacted for awareness.
The Acting Director of Health Promotion advised the public to report any form of rash on their skin promptly while emphasizing the importance of frequent hand washing to help prevent contracting and spreading the disease. She recommended wearing masks, covering lesions around others, keeping skin dry and uncovered, and disinfecting shared spaces.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Mpox a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) last August, due to a new variant spreading in Africa. Mpox has been recorded in over 13 African countries, marking the second WHO alert in two years. As of last year, more than 17,000 suspected cases and 517 deaths had been reported across Africa, according to the Africa Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. The WHO last year approved an Mpox vaccine, aimed at timely and increased access for millions at risk in Africa, where the latest outbreak has infected more than 20,000.