DOH tells public to wear jackets, long sleeves in crowded places to avoid mpox spread

To avoid catching mpox, the Department of Health (DOH) on Monday told the general public to wear jackets or long sleeves in crowded places.

Since mpox virus can spread through close, personal contact, including direct skin-to-skin contact with mpox rash or scabs with a person with mpox, DOH Assistant Secretary Albert Domingo advised the general public to wear long sleeves, jackets, or pants when commuting.

"Ang paghawa ng mpox ay balat sa balat. So kung tayo po ay magsusuot ng long sleeves at pantalon... kung pupunta sa isang sakayan, sa jeep o sa tren at maraming kadikit, wala pong mawawala, habang nasa biyahe magsuot po tayo ng jacket (Because you can get mpox from skin-to-skin contact. So if we can, let's wear long sleeves and pants when riding a jeepney or train and there are a lot of people there)," said in a radio interview.

He also reminded the public to wash their hands with soap or alcohol as they are proven effective methods to kill mpox virus.

"Yung pagsuot natin ng long sleeves, paghugas ng kamay tubig at sabon o paggamit ng alcohol-based sanitizer, lahat po yan effective (Wearing of long sleeves, washing hands with soap and water or using alcohol-based sanitizer, all of that is effective)," he said.

"Ang face mask, hindi po natin nire-require, malayo na tayo sa voluntary o compulsory (We no longer require the wearing of face mask)," he added.