It never rains but it pours. That’s how it feels at the moment when it comes to potential public health challenges facing the UK and the world in general.
There are three in particular that have attracted our attention. The first, and the one that has unsurprisingly grabbed the newspaper headlines, is mpox, formerly known as monkeypox.
This time last week, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that a surge in cases of mpox in parts of Africa constituted a public health emergency of international concern.
“Normally, one of these alone would have generated some level of concern. However, with three at once, health services could find themselves under mounting pressure quickly”
It has prompted the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to update its guidance for nurses and other health workers on mpox to warn them about a new variant, which has been detected in Europe.
Mpox is an infection which causes, among other symptoms, a skin rash similar to chickenpox that often progress into blisters, which scab and fall off. It is spread through close contact such as sexual activity.
Other symptoms include a high temperature, body aches, swollen glands, exhaustion and joint pain. In most cases, it lasts a few weeks but can be fatal, particularly for those with weakened immunity.
If it sounds familiar, there was as an initial outbreak of mpox in Europe during 2022 after which it declined but hung around like sexual health infections tend to do.
Even more familiar than the relatively new and exotic-sounding mpox is the sexually transmitted infection, gonorrhoea, that has rising prevalence of antibiotic-resistant strains.
New data from the UKHSA reveals that, between June 2022 and May 2024, 15 gonorrhoea cases that were resistant to the ‘first line’ antibiotic ceftriaxone were detected in England.
The 15 ceftriaxone-resistant gonorrhoea cases between 2022 and 2024 account for almost half of the total number ever recorded in England since the first in 2015.
It is serious enough that the UKHSA has sent a clinical alert to sexual health services over the rise and to highlight the steps clinicians need to take to manage the situation.
Meanwhile, the WHO warned earlier this month that our old foe Covid-19 was “still very much with us” and that cases had been rising globally.
It said new waves of infection had been registered in Europe, as well as the Americas and the Western Pacific, with suggestions of a rise in cases in the UK during May, June and July.
A snap survey by Nursing Times of almost 550 nursing professionals found that 85% thought they had noticed a rise in cases in their workplaces over the last few months.
Normally, one of these alone would have generated some level of concern. However, with three at once, health services could find themselves under mounting pressure quickly.
The WHO and the International Council of Nurses are clearly monitoring the situation globally but national governments and public health bodies must remain alert too.
The UKHSA was created following the perceived failings of its predecessor, Public Health England, in preparing for the coming Covid-19 pandemic. So far, it’s seemingly done its job well.
Should any, or all, of these public health risks become significant for the UK, then nurses must be adequately warned and supported ahead of the curve. Past public health lessons must be learnt.