The Association of Nigerian Private Medical Practitioners (ANPMP) says it has heightened vigilance for prompt detection of mpox disease in private health facilities across the country.
ANPMP is the umbrella organisation for all medical and dental doctors in private practice either as owners or employees.
The National President of the association, Dr Kayode Adesola, disclosed in an interview on Tuesday in Lagos.
Adesola noted that responding to mpox health crises required the private sector’s workforce, expertise and resource capacities to mitigate the transmission of the disease.
He said the presence of private medical practitioners was visible in all local government areas and was the first port of call for many people seeking healthcare delivery in Nigeria.
Adesola recalled that the index case of Ebola virus disease in 2014 presented in a private hospital in Lagos, noting that proactive measures, strong coordination and collaborative effort assisted in mitigating the case.
According to him, Mpox has an incubation period of three to 17 days, stressing the need for medical practitioners to be cautious and vigilant for prompt detection and diagnosis upon case presentation at health facilities.
He noted that the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has continued to enhance preparedness, and surveillance and implement response activities aimed at preventing the transmission of the disease.
“This includes the development and dissemination of guidelines on infection prevention and control (IPC) measures to both public and private health facilities.
“In view of the critical role ANPMP plays in healthcare delivery in Nigeria, we are actively involved in the strategic alliance to strengthen response activities and resilience to mpox and other infectious diseases,” he said.
Adesola stressed that addressing the myriad of health challenges would require multi-sectoral collaboration and partnership between the public and private sectors to build a resilient healthcare system in Nigeria.
He commended the Federal Government’s enhanced surveillance for mpox clade I detection at all ports of entry to the country while calling for improved sensitisation of the public on prevention measures.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), mpox formerly known as monkeypox is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus, a species of the genus Orthopoxvirus.
Two different mpox clades exist: clade I and clade II. Clade I causes more severe illness and death. Some outbreaks have killed up to 10 per cent of the people who get sick. It is endemic to Central Africa.
Infections from clade II mpox are less severe, with more than 99.9 per cent of people surviving. Clade II is endemic to West Africa.
Mpox causes rashes, flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. The disease can be fatal, especially for children, pregnant women and those with suppressed immune systems.
It is transmitted through close contact, such as sex, skin-to-skin contact and talking or breathing close to another person.
Animal-to-human transmission of mpox occurs from infected animals to humans from bites or scratches, or during activities such as hunting, skinning, trapping, cooking, playing with carcasses, or eating animals.
Data from Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (AfricaCDC) show that 3,101 confirmed and 15,636 suspected mpox cases have been reported from 12 African countries, resulting in 541 deaths.
According to NCDC, 39 confirmed mpox cases and zero deaths were recorded in 19 states and the FCT from the beginning of 2024.
Data shows that mpox cases in Nigeria are clade II, with concerted efforts ongoing to prevent transmission of mpox clade I to the country.
Mpox has been causing widespread devastation in several regions of Africa, prompting WHO to declare it a Global Health Emergency on Aug. 16, saying it requires urgent and coordinated international action to contain its spread and mitigate its impact.
Apart from the African countries, there have been instances of the novel strain of mpox identified in Sweden and Pakistan.
The virus spread to more than 100 countries in 2022, largely through sexual contact, prompting WHO to declare a public health emergency of international concern, its highest level of alert.
WHO ended the emergency 10 months later, saying the health crisis had come under control.
NAN
