Hamilton hosts monkeypox vaccination clinic on Thursday

Monkeypox has landed in Ontario, and while risk of infection for Hamiltonians is very low, public health is taking action.

The city is hosting a pop-up monkeypox vaccination clinic for at-risk residents on June 30 from 9 to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the East End Public Health Clinic, 247 Centennial Pkwy. N., Unit 8. Appointments are required.

The clinic is intended for 18-plus male-identifying folks in the LGBTQ community who have sex with other men and to whom at least one of the following applies:

• Identify as a contact of an individual who recently tested positive for monkeypox;

• Have had two or more sexual partners within the past three weeks (21 days) or may be planning to;

• Have been diagnosed with a chlamydia, gonorrhea or syphilis infection over the past two months;

• Have attended bath houses, sex clubs and other venues for sexual contact within the past 21 days (including workers and volunteers); or

• Have had anonymous or casual sex in the past three weeks (21 days); for example, after using an online dating app, engaged in or planning to take part in sex work.

Monkeypox spreads through contact with bodily fluids, through respiratory droplets following prolonged face-to-face contact or bites and scratches from infected animals. It can take between six and 13 days for symptoms to appear after exposure to the virus.

Monkeypox can cause fever, headaches, swollen lymph nodes, rash and exhaustion. Most people recover on their own without treatment.

As of Tuesday, there have been 67 lab-confirmed cases of monkeypox in Ontario.

To book an appointment at the clinic, call the public health hotline at 905-974-9848, option 7.

Delaney Caulfield is a Hamilton-based web editor at The Spectator. Reach her via email: dcaulfield@thespec.com