Island Health launched a targeted vaccination campaign two weeks ago for people at highest risk of contracting and spreading monkeypox.
Four cases of monkeypox have been confirmed on Vancouver Island — among 61 across the province — and contact tracing and a targeted vaccination program are underway, the province said Friday.
Island Health said three of the affected individuals were from the South Island and one was from the Central Island.
The viral illness, which starts with flu-like symptoms and causes skin sores and blisters, was first confirmed on the Island on July 8.
Island Health launched a targeted vaccination campaign two weeks ago for those at highest risk of contracting and spreading monkeypox: men 18 and older who have sex with other men.
Vaccinations are available in Victoria, Nanaimo and Courtenay, and so far Island Health has administered about 500 doses, said medical health officer Dr. Mike Benusik.
An additional 400 doses were received this week for distribution across the Island.
The 61 confirmed monkeypox cases in British Columbia include 54 in the Vancouver Coastal Health Region and three in Fraser Health.
Public health authorities are following up through contact tracing of those who have been exposed, the health ministry said in a statement.
Health Canada maintains limited supplies of the Imvamune smallpox vaccine, which is also effective against monkeypox.
To date, British Columbia has received 14,480 doses of vaccine to control the outbreak, including post-exposure shots. The province said vaccines are ordered weekly and all doses are distributed to health authorities.
As of Monday, 7,200 doses have been administered in BC
Until now, vaccines have been a priority for the Lower Mainland, where most infections have occurred.
Canada has 803 confirmed cases of monkeypox, according to the Public Health Agency, including 367 in Ontario and 359 in Quebec.
At a briefing this week, Canada’s chief medical officer, Dr. Theresa Tam, advised men who have sex with men to practice safe sex and reduce the number of partners they have to limit the spread of the virus.
“Learning from the HIV pandemic is very important, which is why engaging communities most affected early on to find solutions together will be our best weapon against the spread of this virus,” Tam said.
There has been some criticism of public health messages targeting men who have sex with men, but some say the focus should be on vaccination.
“We need to understand that monkeypox is not a sexually transmitted disease,” said Dr. Milen Drouin, director of public health in Montreal.
British Columbia’s Ministry of Health said in its Friday update that the monkeypox virus does not spread easily from person to person.
“All local transmissions identified involved prolonged skin-to-skin contact, which is presumed to be the main mode of spread of the virus,” the ministry said.
• For more information about getting a monkeypox vaccine in the Island Health region, visit: islandhealth.ca/learn-about-health/diseases-conditions/monkeypox.
dkloster@timescolonist.com
— with files from The Canadian Press
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