State hospitals in Cyprus are fully ready to deal with possible cases in Cyprus from monkeypox, assured on Monday, Minister of Health, Michalis Hadjipantela, adding that Nicosia General Hospital was designated as the reference hospital, with ten beds available and a capacity to accommodate more cases.
Speaking after the extraordinary meeting he convened, following the World Health Organisation’s decision to declare monkeypox a global health emergency, Hadjipantela said he had the opportunity to review the hospitals’ state of readiness in case there is an outbreak of the virus.
The meeting convened in the presence of State Health Services Organisation (SHSO) who is in charge of managing possible monkeypox cases.
The SHSO presented an action plan to the Minister, prepared in collaboration with the Medical Services and is based on screening, isolation and clinical assessment.
Hadjipantela told reporters that on Thursday they received information from WHO, which alarmed the Ministry of Health.
He explained that all procedures were evaluated, the steps that will be taken after a possible case is detected, where the laboratory tests and hospitalisation will take place.
The Minister said he is satisfied with the plan which will continue to be reviewed. If we have to improve it, we will see how to go about it at a later stage, he added.
He also said that later on today he expects to know which day the vaccines to fight monkeypox will arrive.
SHSO director General, Kypros Stavrides said the organisation presented its action plan to the Minister and it is already being implemented after 10 possible cases were located. However, these cases were examined and were negative.
Dr. Linos Hadjihannas, Infectious Disease Specialist said that since May and after the ten suspected cases arose, all procedures were followed and after examination, the ten cases proved to be negative. We have been ready since May to handle any case or confirmed case”, he added.
State of affairs on COVID-19
Regarding the situation of COVID-19 on the island, Minister Hadjipantela said there has been a decline in the number of new cases.
At the moment, there are 98 COVID hospitalisations. On Saturday, there were 989 cases from 9,838 tests and on Sunday 537 from 8,389 tests. “We have managed to overcome successfully all of COVID’s waves,” the Minister concluded.
Source: Cyprus News Agency