Mombasa County's mpox cases rise to 182 as health authorities activate emergency operations
The Department of Health Services reports that 182 people have so far tested positive since the outbreak began last year, with cases spread across Mvita, Nyali, Kisauni, Likoni, Jomvu, and Changamwe.
Mombasa County has strengthened its campaign against Mpox after health records confirmed a steady rise in infections across several sub-counties.
The Department of Health Services reports that 182 people have so far tested positive since the outbreak began last year, with cases spread across Mvita, Nyali, Kisauni, Likoni, Jomvu, and Changamwe.
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According to the Public Health Emergency Operations Manager, Fatma Ali, Nyali and Likoni have registered the highest figures.
She noted that most of the infections fall within the 25–44 age group, though the youngest patient is a four-month-old infant.
“Our findings show that community transmission is driving the spread, which is why we are scaling up interventions at the county level,” Fatma explained.
To deal with the surge, the county has activated its Emergency Operation Centre and set up local testing, a move that has eliminated the earlier reliance on the National Public Health Laboratory in Nairobi.
The Coast General Teaching and Referral Hospital – Utange Field Hospital in Kisauni has been designated as the referral point for all Mpox patients until full recovery.
Fatma added that the county response goes beyond physical treatment. “We are also supporting patients’ mental and psychosocial well-being while ensuring communities are fully engaged through risk communication and education,” she said.
At the Utange Field Hospital, patients are handled under tight infection-control protocols. Community Health Promoters (CHPs) receive suspected cases at the gate, assess symptoms, and direct patients to the triage red zone, where a clinician and nurse determine whether admission is necessary.
Eva Odhiambo, a clinician working with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), described the process.
“All admissions take place inside the red zone, and nothing leaves that area. Each shift has four nurses and a clinician, and we also manage other illnesses alongside Mpox. Patients are only discharged when the lesions crust, fresh skin appears, and they are no longer infectious,” she said.
She added that there are currently no antivirals for Mpox. Treatment, therefore, focuses on relieving symptoms such as lesions, itching, and pain, with ophthalmologists and ENT specialists on standby to handle complications like blindness, deafness, or ear infections.
Odhiambo highlighted stigma as one of the greatest challenges facing patients.
“Unlike COVID-19, Mpox is visible, and people can tell when someone is affected. That visibility brings a heavy burden of discrimination,” she said.
The Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) has also deepened its support, working alongside the county government and other partners to train CHPs and spearhead public awareness drives.
County Coordinator Aisha Al-Hussain confirmed that KRCS has donated protective gear, medical supplies, and materials for the isolation unit.
“We have reached more than 12,000 community members in the last 20 days through house-to-house sensitisation with the help of CHPs and county officials,” she said.
With these measures, Mombasa health authorities remain confident that the county is better equipped to respond to the outbreak, both medically and socially.
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