WHO: Anti-mpox jabs to go to Africa first

WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus —Denis Balibouse/File Photo

MANILA, Philippines — Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, together with other Department of Health (DOH) officials and staff, attended on Friday night a World Health Organization (WHO) briefing on the global mpox situation where it was agreed to concentrate vaccination efforts first in Africa to stop the further spread of the disease.

Albert Domingo, spokesperson for the DOH, said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus presided over the hybrid-format information session from WHO headquarters in Geneva, with more than 300 member-state delegates, WHO staff and experts attending to discuss recent developments on mpox epidemic.

Domingo said WHO presented a draft mpox strategic preparedness and response plan, which highlighted the need for all countries to heighten surveillance, improve reporting of cases and continue the strong collaboration and participation of the international community.

Also discussed were the need to empower community volunteers and health workers to identify suspect cases early and report them promptly to the national mpox surveillance system, Domingo added.

Herbosa earlier convened the DOH’s Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (Ereid-Sage) to discuss the need to empower health workers, particularly dermatologists, who are more likely to determine possible mpox cases given the clear skin symptoms of the disease.

Domingo said WHO experts also discussed the global strategy for a phased approach to vaccination, where the priority now is to stop the outbreak in Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where transmission is highest.

“Once more vaccine doses are available, the next phase will be to expand protection in affected communities, targeting individuals at high risk of severe disease based on local epidemiology in affected areas,” Domingo said.

He said the third and final phase, to protect for the future, will seek to increase levels of population immunity, targeting all populations recommended by WHO’s own Sage “when and as doses become available.”

“We know much about mpox and its skin to skin transmission. Stop it from spreading by washing hands with soap and water or using alcohol sanitizers. Clean surfaces too and keep skin covered,” Herbosa said.