The journal Lancet Regional Health – Americas has just published the article (viewpoint) “Monkeypox in Brazil between Stigma, Politics, and Structural Shortcomings: Have we not been here before?”, signed by three professors and researchers from the University of São Paulo (USP) – Mário Scheffer, from the Faculdade de Medicina, Lorena Barberia, from the Department of Political Science and Vera Paiva, from the Institute of Psychology – together with Giuliano Russo, from Queen Mary University of London.

The text highlights the omissions and mistakes made by the government of Jair Bolsonaro during the covid pandemic and warns of the necessary measures aimed at more effectively controlling the spread of monkeypox in Brazil. On November 3, Brazil registered 9,312 confirmed cases of the disease and a total of 11 deaths, making it the country with the most deaths from the disease in the world.

The authors present five critical and interconnected factors, which can be considered by the newly elected government of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, aiming at a new plan to combat monkeypox, as well as other future epidemic threats:

1. The stigma associated with the infection that disproportionately affects vulnerable populations;

2. Misinformation, misleading or inaccurate messages that make prevention difficult;

3. The previous deficiencies of the health system, with failures in surveillance and primary health care, including lack of testing and poor contact tracing;

4. The country's dependence on importing vaccines and supplies;

5. The political and management crisis, with fragmentation of responses and lack of coordination by the Ministry of Health.

The authors argue that human rights-based approaches need to be at the heart of Brazil's responses to epidemics, ensuring the inclusion of the most vulnerable and the participation of affected communities as part of the solution, not the problem.

Read the article here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667193X22002113_