The competent medical services are on alert to deal with any case of monkey pox (mpox) detected in Cyprus, although the risk of such a thing is very low, the Director of Medical Services and Public Health Services, Elisavet Constantinou, told KYPE. He said that in Cyprus from 2022 until today, five incidents were detected.
"We as the Ministry of Health are evaluating our preparedness, that is, we are studying all the available resources we have and updating our protocols. We value our preparation on a daily basis, we deal with the matter. As soon as there is an alarm in a public health event, an emergency, we are obliged to deal. In Cyprus from 2022 until now we have had only five incidents," he said.
He added that “we are on alert, we are on standby, and we are preparing regardless that the risk is very low. We participate in all the meetings of the ECDC competent bodies of the World Health Organization on a daily basis", he pointed out.
Mrs. Constantinou mentioned that vaccinations can be done at adult vaccination centers on a daily basis in all cities and when someone wishes to do the vaccine it is available.
He also said that there are some suggestions and recommendations for travelers who will visit countries where there is an outbreak of this disease, which are African countries.
"We recommend that they be vaccinated before visiting these countries and also take care to avoid contact and communication with people who appear to have rashes and may have the disease," he noted.
When asked, she said that "we also have pharmaceutical preparations, we have a stock, we also have a sufficient stock of vaccines that are in force".
He also said that the relevant diagnostic method is being applied in two centers – the Nicosia General Hospital, the Microbiological Laboratory and the Institute of Neurology and Genetics – which are in position and are already conducting tests.
"Based on ECDC's risk assessment, there is very little chance for EU citizens who have not traveled or do not plan to travel to the outbreak areas to develop the disease. The risk is very low," he noted.
More attention, he stressed, should be given to vulnerable people, the downtrodden, the elderly, people with long-term illnesses. "They should avoid contact with people who are either diagnosed and may have the disease, avoid going to places where there is a crowd of people and use individual protective measures such as hand washing, etc." completed.