Monkeypox awareness on top of mind at U of G

While some COVID-19 precautions are still a thing heading into the fall at the University of Guelph, the university is also bringing awareness to monkeypox.

The school has posted information to their website, and those living in residence were sent emails over the summer with information on what monkeypox is, how it spreads and things to do to avoid contracting it.

You can also expect to see some more outreach on campus and on social media through move-in weekend and beyond.

"(We will be educating) them about signs and symptoms, monitoring around how it's transmitted and dispelling some of the myths, etc., and how they might try to take action to keep themselves safer," said Alison Burnett, U of G's director of student wellness services.

The monkeypox has slowly come to the forefront over the last few months in Ontario, with the first case in Guelph reported in mid-June, a man in his 20s.

The third and most recent local case, a man in his 30s, was reported late last week.

If someone on campus does end up getting monkeypox, Burnett said it does get reported to public health, and they would be responsible for any contact tracing and assessment on exposure.

"They, of course, would be working in close collaboration with us on campus, and we would take a collaborative approach to management," Burnett said.

"Depending on the situation, what the exposure was like, lots of different factors go into that assessment and we would work together to address that."

Public health does advise anyone who has been diagnosed to isolate, but there is no set amount of days to isolate like we see with COVID-19.

In saying that, there are lessons that can be applied to monkeypox precautions from COVID, though the two are completely different illnesses, says Burnett.

"Each one would be a unique case," she said. "But I think looking at how we safeguard ourselves against transmission by taking those universal precautions around staying home when you're sick, washing your hands, taking care of your health in terms of making sure you get the proper sleep and nutrition … cleanliness of surfaces, things like that, wearing appropriate levels of other protections that we might put into place.

"I think those are good universal precautions that we can take to help safeguard ourselves against various illnesses, whether it's COVID, monkeypox, flu, etc."

Eligibility for the pre-exposure monkeypox vaccine expanded last week to include a broader segment of the LGBTQ+ population, as well as sex workers. Initially, priority for the shot was on gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men who meet certain criteria.

But while the university says the illness is disproportionally impacting queer communities, everyone should be taking proper public health measures.

If you are eligible, you are encouraged to get the vaccine, offered every Tuesday through Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health and the ARCH clinic by appointment.

Burnett is also urging students to get any other vaccine being offered, including COVID-19 booster shots or the flu shot.

"It's important that they meet with their healthcare provider, and talk about the vaccines that are available to them and utilize those," she said.

You can find more information on monkeypox, including symptoms, preventing spread, and how to get vaccine here.