WHO’s new recommendations represent a change in the public health agency’s messaging. World Health Organization has noticed a similarity in the majority affected by monkeypox disease and advises males who have sex with men to temporarily reduce the number of sexual partners they have.
During a news briefing, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director-general of WHO stated that 98 per cent of cases of monkeypox had been documented among men who have intercourse with men.
“For men who have sex with men, this includes, for the moment, reducing your number of sexual partners, reconsidering sex with new partners, and exchanging contact details with any new partners to enable follow-up if needed,” said Tedros.
Increasing numbers of at-risk homosexual and bisexual men trying to get diagnosed, treated, and vaccinated during the spreading monkeypox outbreak are fighting for scarce resources, revealing significant discrepancies in the gay community.
Minorities such as people of colour, those with lower incomes, and those who live outside of major cities face even greater difficulties as accessing care for the most recent viral threat remains difficult.
Public health officials have urged not to stigmatise members of the LGBTQ+ community or convey the idea that monkeypox only affects men who have sex with men.
This effort began when the WHO first announced the monkeypox outbreak in May.
The discrimination against the Queer community is growing while the U.S. leads the world in instances of monkeypox. The LGBTQ+ community has consistently been the focus of stigma and prejudice, beginning with the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s and continuing with today’s monkeypox.
Tedros advised nations to “lower the risk of transmission to other susceptible groups,” such as children, pregnant women, and those with weakened immune systems. “Anyone exposed can develop monkeypox,” he warned.
Nevertheless, appeals for health organisations and governments to conduct more targeted outreach to members of that community have grown as it has become apparent that monkeypox is currently primarily increasing among men who have sex with other men.
