Since February, attacks on healthcare workers and facilities have become more brazen, leading foreign medical workers to float ideas that would have once been unthinkable.
This report explores the lessons of an Ebola outbreak through the lens of the US and UN policymakers who were forced to construct an unprecedented response in real time.
The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that it may not be possible to contain Ebola to the two affected provinces in eastern Congo if violent attacks on health teams and centers aren’t stopped.
Health officials are seeking to stretch supplies with lower doses, and to expand the vaccination pool beyond known patient contacts.
The new recommendations include endorsing operational adjustments that make the vaccination process faster and adjusting the dosage based on available efficacy data. It was also recommended that the population eligible for vaccination be expanded.
Double-digit daily increases in the case count are now common, while most new Ebola virus disease cases are people who were never on the radar of the teams searching for those who have been exposed to the virus.
More than 1,000 people have died since August in an Ebola outbreak in thet Democratic Republic of Congo. The DRC government is working with international aid organizations to contain the deadly disease but efforts have been challenged by insecurity, including attacks on health clinics.
The World Health Organization (WHO) head, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, discussed fighting the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo amid attacks on health workers.
The outbreak total is currently 1,495 cases, with 1,429 confirmed and 66 probable. There have been 984 deaths, and 306 suspected cases are still under investigation.
Strengthening both security and the Ebola response effort is essential to contain the Democratic Republic of the Congo outbreak UN health agency’s officials said