TY - JOUR
T1 - Mpox in East Africa
T2 - Learning from COVID-19 and Ebola to Strengthen Public Health Responses
AU - Gashema, Pierre
AU - Musafiri, Tumusime
AU - Ndahimana, Felix
AU - Iradukunda, Hyppolyte
AU - Saramba, Eric
AU - Nyakatswau, Stuart T.
AU - Gahamanyi, Noel
AU - Iradukunda, Patrick Gad
AU - Ahmed, Ayman
AU - Dzinamarira, Tafadzwa
AU - Muvunyi, Claude Mambo
PY - 2024/10/8
Y1 - 2024/10/8
N2 - The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared mpox a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS) in Africa. African public health systems have moved to mobilize a response against a backdrop of inherent significant challenges. With this commentary, we discuss how lessons from past public health emergencies, particularly COVID-19 and Ebola outbreaks, have prepared the region for improved disease surveillance, rapid response strategies, and effective public health communication and how these lessons can be applied to the mpox response, emphasizing the importance of strong healthcare infrastructure, effective data sharing, community engagement, targeted interventions, and robust contact tracing. Additionally, addressing misinformation and building public trust are crucial for controlling the spread of any disease. By leveraging these strategies, African countries can enhance their response to mpox. This includes improving diagnostic capabilities, strengthening cross-border collaborations, and prioritizing vaccination campaigns where needed. Ultimately, by applying the hard-earned lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and Ebola outbreak, the East Africa region can better address the challenges posed by mpox and safeguard public health.
AB - The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared mpox a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security (PHECS) in Africa. African public health systems have moved to mobilize a response against a backdrop of inherent significant challenges. With this commentary, we discuss how lessons from past public health emergencies, particularly COVID-19 and Ebola outbreaks, have prepared the region for improved disease surveillance, rapid response strategies, and effective public health communication and how these lessons can be applied to the mpox response, emphasizing the importance of strong healthcare infrastructure, effective data sharing, community engagement, targeted interventions, and robust contact tracing. Additionally, addressing misinformation and building public trust are crucial for controlling the spread of any disease. By leveraging these strategies, African countries can enhance their response to mpox. This includes improving diagnostic capabilities, strengthening cross-border collaborations, and prioritizing vaccination campaigns where needed. Ultimately, by applying the hard-earned lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and Ebola outbreak, the East Africa region can better address the challenges posed by mpox and safeguard public health.
KW - COVID-19
KW - Ebola virus
KW - epidemic
KW - global health security
KW - mpox vaccine
KW - mpox virus
KW - pandemic
KW - poxvirus
U2 - 10.3390/v16101578
DO - 10.3390/v16101578
M3 - Comment/Letter to the editor
C2 - 39459912
AN - SCOPUS:85207430521
SN - 1999-4915
VL - 16
JO - Viruses
JF - Viruses
IS - 10
M1 - 1578
ER -