DOH to Designate RITM as Main Isolation Facility for Monkeypox Cases

No monkeypox case has been detected yet in the Philippines, but preparations for isolation facilities for the viral disease are now underway, as led by the Department of Health (DOH). 

The DOH Field Implementation and Coordination Team (FICT) and the One Hospital Command Center (OHCC) are currently working on the designation of isolation facilities, the DOH said in a message to reporters, according to reports on May 26.

"The priority now is to ensure compliance with requirements," the health agency was quoted as saying.

In its Guidelines for the Implementation of Monkeypox Surveillance, Screening, Management, and Infection Control, dated May 24, the DOH said the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) "is hereby designated as the main isolation facility for suspect, probable, and confirmed monkeypox cases" during the activation of Doors 1 and 2 of the DOH's 4-Door Alert System.

GMA News reported on May 24 that Health Undersecretary Abdullah Dumama Jr. said on Monday's "Talk to the People" that the four-door alert system is to intensify border control to prevent the entry of the virus into the country.

The strategy, which was first implemented to curb the spread of COVID-19, implements travel restrictions; ensures safeguards such as screening, testing, and quarantine at points of entry; strengthens implementation of prevent-detect-isolate-treat-reintegrate strategies to detect and isolate cases; and strengthens health and critical capacity systems amid a surge for proper management of the virus.

A zoonotic disease, monkeypox is caused by the monkeypox virus which belongs to the Orthopoxvirus genus. Variola virus (which causes smallpox), vaccinia virus (used in smallpox vaccine), and cowpox virus also fall under this genus. Monkeypox is transmitted through close contact (wounds, body fluids, respiratory droplets) with an infected person or animal, or contaminated materials. Its symptoms include fever, rashes, and swollen lymph nodes.

More than 200 confirmed or suspected cases of monkeypox have since been detected in 20 countries, mostly in Europe.