Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh assured this country is ready to move quickly to address any cases that are detected locally.
In an interview on Saturday, he said the Ministry of Health (MoH) had already begun sensitising key groups.
Although Europe is currently the epicentre of the outbreak, the WHO said right now, men who have sex with men, especially those with multiple partners, are the community at highest risk.
Deyalsingh advised that outreach efforts were being done via the HIV/AIDS Coordinating Unit; the Sexually Transmitted Diseases Clinics; and other non-governmental networks to which the vulnerable populations are affiliated.
According to the nine recommendations outlined by the WHO—T&T is in Group One which includes countries that have no history of Monkeypox, or have not recorded a case of Monkeypox for over 21 days. Despite this, the minister urged the population not to become complacent.
“What it means for T&T, is that we should be on a heightened state of vigilance,” he advised.
More than 16,000 cases have been reported in 70 countries, with five deaths recorded in Africa so far.
Deyalsingh said: “We ask the population to be extremely vigilant, especially with individuals who are in close skin-to-skin contact with anyone who has recently come in from any of those 70 countries.”
Indicating the Ministry of Health had focused its efforts on the local homosexual population in terms of outreach and awareness, he said the Trinidad Public Health Lab could facilitate testing once the need arose.
He said the Caura Hospital had been designated as the isolation and treatment facility.
“In case we get any positive cases or even a suspect case until we have confirmation,” Deyalsingh said officials in Tobago had also been advised to set up a similar facility for the island.
Regarding the virus’s mortality rate which remains confined to the African continent for now, he said: “While that may be comforting to us, we just have as a small country, to make sure we do everything to protect ourselves, to mitigate against the possible entry of the virus.”
He said, “We can’t keep it out entirely. Our borders are open but the mitigation strategies are in place and we ask the entire population to be vigilant, and be aware that the main mode of transmission as it has been, is close skin-to-skin contact.”
Deyalsingh warned that the virus can also be spread via shared bedding and clothing, especially if skin lesions are open.
“It is a very intimate form of transmission and we have been advising persons about,” he added.
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