The Ministry of Health has provided an update on the Mpox outbreak in the country. On Tuesday, August 6, 2024, Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni confirmed that the first patient has recovered. The patient, a truck driver, was identified on July 22, 2024, at the Taveta One Stop Border Point.
“The patient was isolated at Taveta Sub-County Hospital, where clinicians suspected either chickenpox or Mpox. Skin lesion samples were taken, and results from the National Public Health Laboratories confirmed Mpox on July 29, 2024. This diagnosis was further validated by other reference laboratories within the national laboratory network,” PS Muthoni stated.
In addition to this positive development, the Ministry of Health has initiated efforts to identify all individuals the patient came into contact with. Due to the highly infectious nature of Mpox, the Ministry is tracing all close contacts at his workplace, the hospital where he was admitted, and along his travel routes.
“The patient has travelled through Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and Rwanda. So, we are working with our neighbouring countries to identify any contacts and any other potential cases. There is an active Mpox outbreak in DRC, Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda,” the Ministry of Health stated.
Further, the Ministry announced that no other case of Mpox has been recorded in the country.
Other response measures the Ministry of Health has continued to undertake include:
• The ministry has deployed a rapid response team to support the affected counties with detailed investigations.
• The ministry has also activated the Public Health Emergency Operation Centres across the country.
• Incident management teams have been established to coordinate response activities.
• The ministry is monitoring the evolution of the outbreak in our neighbouring countries to assess the risk of regional transmission and appropriately adjust our response measures.
• All counties have been advised to sensitize the public on the outbreak and the requisite preventive measures necessary to avoid contracting the disease, as well as the steps to take when they contract the disease, including frequent hand washing with soap and water or hand sanitizer, seeking treatment early when infected, and avoiding close contact with sick persons.
• The ministry has provided emergency hotline numbers for the public to report suspected cases and seek further information on the outbreak. The numbers are 719, 0729471414, and 0732353535.
“The ministry is working closely with the county government authorities and all relevant partners to ensure all necessary interventions are put in place to protect citizens from the outbreak.”
