Home-Based Care: A COVID-19 Era Strategy Helps Fight Mpox
November 3, 2025
As mpox continues to affect 26 African countries, home-based care has emerged as a pragmatic solution for managing mild cases amid limited hospital capacity. Adapted from COVID-19 strategies, the approach balances practicality with risk, relying on community health workers, infection prevention kits, and nutrition support to prevent household transmission. Countries such as Sierra Leone have shifted between home and institutional care depending on outbreak intensity. While over one million people have been vaccinated, vaccine access and logistics remain significant barriers. The Africa CDC’s coordinated response underscores how innovation, community engagement, and cross-sector partnerships can strengthen resilience against evolving epidemics.
Home-based care, once a key strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic, has re-emerged as a vital public health tool in the fight against mpox across Africa. With outbreaks now spanning 26 countries, the approach offers a practical means to manage mild infections when hospital isolation capacity is strained. Yet, experts stress that its success depends on community trust, strong oversight, and consistent support.
Professor Yap Boum of the Africa CDC’s Mpox Incident Management Support Team explained that home-based care allows infected individuals to isolate safely within their homes while being monitored by community health workers for 21 days. This method proved effective in Uganda and Liberia but also carries risks if infection prevention and control measures are not strictly followed. In Sierra Leone, authorities transitioned from home isolation to establishing 25 treatment centers as cases surged, illustrating the need for flexible response models.
Dr Patrick Kabwe of Africa CDC emphasized that home-based care must be comprehensive, including nutrition packages, medical kits, and hygiene supplies to protect both patients and caregivers. Updated guidelines from WHO and Africa CDC now integrate community engagement, case management, and surveillance, ensuring safer implementation.
At the same time, preventive measures such as fractional vaccination are expanding coverage amid shortages. Over one million people have been vaccinated, but the continent still requires 6.4 million doses. Vaccines from Bavarian Nordic and Japan’s LC16m8 have reached 12 countries, though logistical barriers persist.
The Africa CDC and WHO continue to coordinate an unprecedented joint emergency response through the Mpox Incident Management Support Team. This collaboration represents a milestone in African-led public health leadership. By combining local innovation, global expertise, and sustained funding, Africa’s mpox response demonstrates how practical, community-driven solutions can build long-term resilience against infectious disease threats.