18 August 2018
Mangina, DR Congo, 17 August (Infosplusgabon) – Responding to the Ebola epidemic currently affecting the Democratic Republic of the Congo's North Kivu region, MSF) on August 14, a center for disease treatment in Mangina, a small town that was considered the epicenter of the epidemic.
All patients in the isolation unit where MSF worked to improve biosafety were transferred to the 12 tents of the new Ebola treatment center, reports MSF in a statement that 37 patients are currently hospitalized, 31 are laboratory tests confirmed as being infected with the virus, while the others are classified as suspected cases.
"Among our patients we have several colleagues from the Congolese health system in the region," said Gwenola Seroux, coordinator of the MSF emergency program, who explained that they were the first to respond and that some were exposed to the virus
According to the Congolese Ministry of Health, the virus has already killed 41 people
On 1 August 2018, the Democratic Republic of Congo declared an Ebola outbreak in the north-east of the country.
With regard to some of the priorities outlined in the global health authorities response plan, MSF said it was also active in supporting local health infrastructure.
In the Ituri province, an MSF team works on the road between Mambasa and Makeke, on the border with North Kivu, and visits health centers to set up isolation rooms for ebola.
Infection prevention and control protocols are strengthened to ensure the continuity of care for non-Ebola patients, a crucial pillar of the response to the epidemic
For the same reason, the organization works to protect the various existing projects in the region the risk of contamination, providing essential medical services.
A vaccination program is being carried out by the Ministry of Health with the support of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the region most affected by the epidemic.
According to the Ministry of Health, almost 1,200 contacts have been identified to date.
MSF noted that North Kivu, where the outbreak was declared on 1 August, was one of the most volatile regions in the region
Ongoing conflicts and intense military interventions have led to a large number of displacements, problem of limited access to health care was aggravated.
Large population movements can suddenly occur in response to an explosion of violence.
These factors will have a significant impact on the humanitarian response. Practical activities, such as contact tracing, community awareness, surveillance, warning surveys, vaccination and health promotion, which generally require access to external sites, are inevitably influenced by practical constraints imposed by context
In neighboring Uganda, MSF is part of the national working party whose task is to ensure that effective preparations are made to address the risk of cross-border contamination.
END / INFOSPLUSGABON / ERD / GABON 2018
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