Health staff to receive training on monkeypox threat

Officials say WHO help will be sought to prepare training module

RAWALPINDI:

The Rawalpindi health department has decided to impart training to the hospital staff including doctors and nurses amid growing concerns about the spread of monkeypox, although, not a single case has been reported so far in the Rawalpindi region.

Health department sources said that the World Health Organisation’s help will be sought for preparing the training module. They said that healthcare workers, doctors and hospital staff who performed exceptionally well during the dengue and coronavirus outbreaks will be given priority for the training.

According to the sources, the Punjab government has granted authorisation to the Rawalpindi health department to train health workers to cope with possible monkeypox cases.

They said that MBBS students will be included in the training programme if needed. During the training, the health staff will be taught how to treat monkeypox patients while taking care of self-protection.

The training will focus on health professionals' potential safety, methods for transferring a patient from one ward to another, as well as laboratory test sampling.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 11^th, 2022.