(MENAFN- Live Mint) As India gets its first suspected case of Mpox, the Centre on Monday advised the states and union territories to screen, test and trace contact of all suspect mpox cases. The states and UTs were also advised to identify isolation facilities in hospitals for both suspect and confirmed patients.
In a letter sent to states and union territories, Union health Secretary Apurva Chandra asked them to prevent“any undue panic” amongst the masses.
"No new case of Mpox has been reported in India in the current outbreak, and none of the samples in suspected cases have tested positive," he said, while emphasising the need to stay alert.
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Chandra also highlighted that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare continues to closely monitor the evolving situation.
In the letter, Health Secretary asked the states and UTs to review public health preparedness particularly at health facility level, identify isolation facilities in hospitals, and ensure availability of required logistics and trained human resources at such facilities.
He also called for the orientation of all key stakeholders with focus on surveillance units under the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) at state and district levels to re-orient them on definitions of suspect, probable, confirmed cases, contact tracing and other surveillance activities.
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On Sunday, the Health Ministry had said India's sole suspected case of Mpox was reported in Delhi in a man who recently returned to India from abroad.
The patient has been placed under isolation in a designated hospital, it said adding that he is currently stable.
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Notably, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had declared Mpox a public health emergency of international concern on 14 August 2024.
The first announcement of the global outbreak was made in 2022 when cases started getting reported from world over.
Also Read | No reported cases of Monkeypox in India, says health ministry
Shortly after WHO's global alert, the Union Health Ministry had incorporated suggestions from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) in August, which included updated alert identifying sick patients at the ports of entry; isolation of suspected and confirmed cases; lab tests; symptoms, prevention, reporting of patients to the hospitals; surveillance strategies; community awareness; and hospital infection control measures.
(With PTI inputs)
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