KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has rolled out a five-point strategy, including stepping up its surveillance at all international entry points nationwide, amid growing concern over the multi-country outbreak of monkeypox.
Under the strategic approach, health and immigration authorities have been instructed to be on the lookout for inbound travellers who display symptoms associated with the viral zoonotic disease, for them to undergo immediate screening and subsequently treatment.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said starting tomorrow, travellers from countries where monkeypox are endemic as well as nations with cases of the viral infection would be informed via the MySejahtera application to monitor symptoms associated to the disease.
"They will receive an alert just so that they are aware and that they will monitor for symptoms (associated with monkeypox) for the next 21 days given that the incubation period for the viral disease is up to three weeks," he told a virtual press conference today.
Khairy is currently in Geneva for the 75th session of the World Health Assembly (WHA), which is scheduled to conclude on May 29.
Another strategy is to raise the country's diagnostic capability.
"At the moment, our diagnostic capacity for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test can detect monkeypox.
"Nevertheless, we will expand our capacity as well as our ability through the procurement of more reagents to ensure that we have the capacity to test for monkeypox using PCR and other molecular tests," he said.
The ministry, said Khairy, had also instructed public and private hospitals as well as clinics not only to be ready to conduct early detections of symptoms associated with monkeypox but also isolation to treat patients who contracted the disease.
He said the country would also prepare a ring vaccination strategy, which means vaccinating all the close contacts of positive monkeypox cases, including healthcare workers.
"Having gone through Covid-19 for two years, we are quite familiar with the protocols involved in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
"Therefore, the protocols of isolation, contact tracing and utilisation of MySejahtera's home surveillance order will be replicated in the event there is an outbreak of monkeypox in Malaysia," he said.
On whether the ministry would consider carrying out a mass immunisation exercise similar to that of the Covid-19 National Immunisation Programme, Khairy responded in the negative.
"No. We do not have any plan to do so aside from targeted vaccination involving close contacts of confirmed monkeypox cases and healthcare workers who are treating these patients.
"As of now, we have not reached a level which requires a mass immunisation exercise," he said.
Other than Malaysia, Thailand has also ramped up surveillance measures, even though there is no confirmed case of the disease there.
Bernama quoted Thailand's Deputy Public Health Minister Sathit Pitutecha who had instructed authorities to identify and collect samples from passengers who display symptoms related to the disease for testing.
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) on its portal said 219 confirmed cases of monkeypox had been reported in multiple countries as of May 25.