Hamilton Public Health will host a second monkeypox vaccination clinic on Thursday

A day after the city’s first case of monkeypox was confirmed, Hamilton Public Health announced it will host a second pop-up immunization clinic to combat the virus.

The clinic, aimed at at-risk members of the community, takes place July 7 from 9 to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the East End Public Health Clinic, 247 Centennial Pkwy. N., block 8.

Appointments are required.

Public health said in a statement Monday that the infected resident likely picked up the virus during a recent visit to Toronto. They are isolated and their relatives are notified.

The risk to the public remains low according to public health.

Thursday’s vaccination clinic is for people over 18 who identify as men in the LGBTQ community, who have sex with other men, and who have at least one of the following:

• Identify as a contact a person who has recently tested positive for monkeypox;

• You have had two or more sexual partners in the past three weeks (21 days) or may plan to;

• have been diagnosed with chlamydia, gonorrhea or syphilis infection in the past two months;

• have visited bathrooms, sex clubs and other places for sexual contact in the past 21 days (including workers and volunteers); or

• You have had anonymous or casual sex in the last three weeks (21 days); for example, after using an online dating app, engaging in or planning to engage in sex work.

Monkeypox is spread through contact with bodily fluids, through respiratory droplets after prolonged face-to-face contact, or through bites and scratches from infected animals. It can take between six and 13 days for symptoms to appear after exposure to the virus.

Monkeypox can cause fever, headache, swollen lymph nodes, rash and exhaustion. Most people recover on their own without treatment.

As of Tuesday, there were 101 laboratory-confirmed cases of monkeypox in Ontario.

In the first vaccination clinic, Hamilton Public Health immunized more than 60 community members, according to a release.

To make an appointment at the clinic, call the Public Health Hotline at 905-974-9848, option 7.

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