A leading infectious diseases expert has warned against dismissing the threat posed by monkeypox, as a vaccination program begins.
Burnet Institute chief executive Brendan Crabb said the community should take more precautions against the virus.
It comes as NSW begins rolling out the monkeypox vaccine for high-risk groups including gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men.
However, Professor Crabb told the Medical Journal of Australia’s InSight+ podcast monkeypox loomed as another large infectious disease issue, coming off the back of COVID-19.
“We should be acting in a precautionary way, not hand-waving it away as a disease of gay men,” he said.
“That’s not the way you (should) treat new things emerging this way. You act in a strong precautionary principle way. You shut it down until you know more, and unfortunately, we’re not doing that.
“We have the big lessons from COVID-19 which we just don’t seem to have learned with respect to monkeypox.”
Fifty-seven cases of monkeypox have been reported so far in Australia.
The NSW rollout has been limited to high-risk groups due to global monkeypox vaccine shortages.
NSW Health set to have 5500 doses available in the first stage with a further 30,000 doses expected to arrive by the end of September.
It’s expected 70,000 more doses will be available in early 2023.
Karen Price, chief executive of health organisation ACON which is leading the vaccine rollout, said high take-up of the monkeypox vaccine was critical.
“So far, we are fortunate that Australia has not seen a rapid spread of the virus, however case numbers are extremely likely to increase,” she said.
“That’s why access to this vaccine is imperative.”
NSW independent MP Alex Greenwich has also urged high-risk groups to be vaccinated for monkeypox ahead of Sydney hosting WorldPride early next year.
“While the disease has been prevalent in Africa since the 1970s, the main groups affected in Australia so far are returned travellers who are men who have sex with men,” he said.
“People with compromised immunity are at high risk of severe illness and the isolation period to protect others from spread can be disruptive to life, so vaccination is important.”
