Iowa State is Story County's sole provider of monkeypox vaccines. Who can get a shot and how?
Phillip SitterIowa State University Thielen Student Health Center is Story County's only provider of the monkeypox vaccine as public health officials continue to create a strategy to vaccinate people most at risk to the disease.
Monkeypox is rarely fatal, but the disease can be painful with symptoms that lasts weeks. Those who contract monkeypox are advised to stay home until they are no longer contagious.
How many cases of monkeypox are there in Iowa?
The Iowa Department of Public Health announced the state's first probable case on July 2. There have been a total of 23 confirmed cases in Iowa as of Wednesday, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
More:You have a lump on your arm weeks after monkeypox vaccine. Why it's a 'super common' side effect.
That's out of more than 24,000 cases reported in the U.S. and more than 63,000 globally since Jan. 1. The U.S. has the most confirmed cases out of any country.
The disease, which can infect humans via animals including primates and rodents, had previously rarely been observed outside of Africa. But an outbreak in Nigeria in 2017 and 2018 brought human cases to Europe and Asia through travel, according to a publication from Iowa State's Center for Food Security & Public Health.
The current global outbreak is being driven by person-to-person transmission. The disease does not spread easily between people without close contact, according to Iowa's Department of Public Health, including:
- Direct contact with the sores or rashes that can manifest on a person who is infected.
- Respiratory droplets and oral fluids, especially during prolonged close contact with a person who is infected, such as during sex and other intimate physical contact.
- Contact with the clothing, bedding, towels or other fabrics used by person who is infected.
More information about the symptoms of monkeypox and how to prevent its spread is available at idph.iowa.gov/ehi/monkeypox.
Who is eligible to be vaccinated for monkeypox in Iowa?
Though anyone can be infected, regardless of a person's sexual orientation or gender identity, most of the cases have been among men who have sex with men.
That's why eligibility to receive a vaccine — beyond people who've possibly been exposed to monkeypox — in Iowa is currently limited to:
- Men who are gay, bisexual or otherwise have sex with men.
- People who are transgender and their partners.
- People who have HIV.
Jessica Shannon, the health center’s assistant director of nursing and patient services, said Thielen has administered all vaccines provided in previous shipments. The health center had received another shipment of 100 doses this week.
How can I get vaccinated against monkeypox in Story County?
Any eligible person in Story County can get vaccinated against monkeypox at the Thielen Student Health Center, 2647 Union Drive. It is not limited to university students, faculty or staff.
"Given the limited vaccine that is available, we want to help vaccine get distributed to those that meet eligibility criteria and avoid wasting doses. We want to support the public health efforts for not only campus, but the entire Ames and Story County community," said Kristen Clark, university public health coordinator.
People can schedule a vaccination appointment by calling 515-294-5801. Students also can schedule online at cyclonehealth.org/appt.
Patients are asked screening questions to determine their eligibility. Due to short supply, doses are administered only one day a week.
Shannon said the center is "prepared to offer the vaccine more days a week should we have the demand."
Information about vaccination sites in other Iowa counties is available at idph.iowa.gov/ehi/monkeypox/vaccine.
As of Sept. 14, Iowa had been shipped all 1,681 requested vials of the vaccine, out of more than 2,400 allocated to the state by the federal government, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
More:Iowa nurse fired after improperly administering monkeypox vaccines
What discussions are Iowa State students having about monkeypox?
Dan Scanlon, a graduate student and president of the Queer* Graduate Student Association at Iowa State, said while his organization has not discussed monkeypox as a group, it is something people are informally talking about.
Scanlon said sexual health and disease prevention is openly discussed within the LGBTQ community, and that now includes "various perspectives on receiving the (monkeypox) vaccine to defining situations where risk factors may be higher."
He said he thinks discussions will continue until concerns about the spread of monkeypox lessen.
Given close contact among college students in many situations, monkeypox has been a concern for universities across the country.
Phillip Sitter covers education for the Ames Tribune, including Iowa State University and PreK-12 schools in Ames and elsewhere in Story County. Phillip can be reached via email at psitter@gannett.com. He is on Twitter @pslifeisabeauty.