By No. 1 Citizen
Central Equatoria State Governor Gen. Augustino Jadalla Kamilo Wani received a briefing on suspected Mpox (Monkeypox) cases from the State Minister of Health on Tuesday, with a focus on Juba County.
Following the briefing, the State Minister of Health Najwa Juma Mursal briefed the media about the current situation concerning suspected Mpox cases in Juba City.
She said while there is no suspected case, there is a need for heightened vigilance and awareness among the public.
The Minister said that, as of 18th August the State rapid response team from the Ministry of Health identified and collected samples of four suspected Mpox cases in Juba Central Prison and five suspected cases in Munuki Block (B) in Juba, adding the samples have been taken by the national Ministry of Health for examination.
“In Juba Central prison, four suspected cases of Mpox were identified and four samples were collected. In Munuki Block (B) south of Suk Libya, five suspected cases were identified in which four samples were collected and out of these five cases, one has died,” said Najwa.
“Currently, there is no confirmed case in Central Equatoria State as the samples are still pending testing at the National Public Health Laboratory,” Najwa said.
Najwa explained that Mpox is a viral infection that spreads through close contact with an infected person, contaminated surfaces, respiratory droplets and contact with infected animals such as rats and monkeys.
Key symptoms include fever, headache, muscle pain, fatigue and a rash that can appear on the body.
Preventive measures against the disease include avoiding direct contact with infected or suspected persons, and avoiding direct contact with animal’s fluid from rats and monkeys, said Najwa.
She called on the public to immediately report any suspected cases to nearest health facility or call toll free number 6666.
She expressed the readiness of the State Ministry of Health to respond to any suspected case within the State while urging the public to be vigilant.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently declared the Mpox as a public health emergency of international concern as some cases are reported in some parts of Africa.