Anticipating Monkeypox Cases, KKP Tightens Passenger Supervision At Soetta Airport

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION/DOK Angkasa Pura/Soekarno-Hatta Airport Tangerang

JAKARTA - The Soekarno-Hatta (Soetta) Port Health Office (KKP) is tightening the supervision and monitoring of the health of passengers arriving at Soekarno Hatta International Airport, Tangerang, Banten.

Head of KKP Soetta Naning Nugrarahini said the effort to increase the tightening was carried out after the discovery of a case of monkeypox (monkeypox) in DKI Jakarta, by the Indonesian Ministry of Health some time ago.

"After being announced by the Ministry of Health (a case of monkeypox). We took anticipatory steps, one of which was to supervise passengers entering and leaving Soetta airport with observation of signs and symptoms," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Wednesday, October 25.

He explained that monitoring the prevention of infectious diseases such as monkeypox would be very different from monitoring from the stages of the COVID-19 protocol.

His party will focus on checking the characteristics of the exposure to the outbreak such as red spots or rashes on the skin, to spots such as fluid in them, then accompanied by fever.

Then, officers who are in SCP require to conduct a health check on passengers. Furthermore, officers in the field will also also screen the symptoms of monkeypox.

"We will provide an increase in the capacity of officers in recognizing the signs and symptoms of monkeypox," he said.

As a step if a contagious disease is found, the Soetta Airport KKP immediately communicates and educates all airlines and other airport authorities as preparedness in handling it.

"Conducting communication and education about Mpox in the airport environment, and we increase vigilance by writing to airlines, to be aware of THD passengers in signs and symptoms," he said.

According to him, until now passengers have not been found with symptoms of monkeypox at Soetta Airport. However, strict supervision is still being carried out, both at arrivals at the airport and arrivals from abroad.

Previously, the Indonesian Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) reported that as many as six cases of monkeypox in Jakarta were attacked by people with HIV (ODHIV) and had bisexual orientation.

"From the search results, it is known that six monkeypox patients are ODHIV and have bisexual orientation," said Director General of Disease Prevention and Control Maxi Rein Rondonuwu in Jakarta.

Maxi said the majority of confirmed monkeypox patients were men aged between 25-29 years, while the rest were men aged 30-39 years.

Based on the results of laboratory examinations as of October 13, 2023, said Maxi, the Ministry of Health detected a total of seven confirmed cases of monkeypox in Indonesia this year.

This number is outside one of the first cases found in Indonesia in 2022.

All confirmed cases were found in the DKI Jakarta area. In detail, one case was reported from Jatinegara, Mampang one case, Kebayoran Lama one case, Setiabudi two cases, Grogol Petamburan one case, and Kembangan one case.