The post WHO calls crisis meeting over deadly Ebola outbreak in DR Congo first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

The post WHO calls crisis meeting over deadly Ebola outbreak in DR Congo appeared first on MegaIcon Magazine.

Dr Michelle Gayer, emergency health director at the International Rescue Committee, said:

“Tackling this outbreak is a fight on multiple fronts. Mbandaka is easily connected to Kinshasa and neighbouring countries like Central African Republic. So preparedness work, now, is vital – it means health facilities on alert and ready to detect any Ebola cases – isolating them, taking samples, tracing all their contacts, and providing information to the community. This requires teams in neighbouring countries and other parts of the DRC to be trained, providing practice drills so teams are ready. Preparedness means rapid response. No preparedness means delays. Any delays will cost lives.”

Funding and support in surrounding countries like Central African Republic and South Sudan is required now to ensure appropriate preparedness. The international response must do more to prepare across the region as well as responding to the outbreak itself.

Due to the risk of a regional epidemic spread, the surrounding countries have taken significant steps towards protecting themselves against an outbreak but more must be done to effectively prepare them. The government of Central African Republic, alongside the World Health Organisation, have adopted numerous positions for preparation, mobilising international health actors, but funding remains insufficient. Similarly, the Ministry of Health in South Sudan is establishing screening points at entry points into the country, but requires global support in order to securely protect the nation.

https://iso.keq.mybluehost.me/9247-2/

The IRC is working on contingency planning for our programs. Where we have health programs, the IRC is strengthening surveillance and coordinating at national level with WHO/Ministry Of Health preparedness missions. The IRC is strengthening national surveillance in surrounding countries where health programming is in operation. Handwashing devices, soap, protective gloves, and other lifesaving WASH equipment, is being provided in addition to trainings within existing health structures.

As DRC’s ninth outbreak, the government has a history of effectively stopping the spread of Ebola. Previous outbreaks were all in very remote locations or small towns, and this new outbreak is significant as it is now in at least three different simultaneous locations and has reached reached Mbakanda, a large densely populated city with transport and port links to the rest of the country.

The post Ebola: Delays cost lives, threaten deadly spread to surrounding countries first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

The post Ebola: Delays cost lives, threaten deadly spread to surrounding countries appeared first on MegaIcon Magazine.

The study, published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, uses statistical modelling to measure the impact of Red Cross safe and dignified burial (SDB) teams during the Ebola outbreak. It found that the practice of safe and dignified burials potentially averted as many as 10,450 Ebola cases, decreasing the scale of the outbreak by over a third (36.5 per cent).

Red Cross teams in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea took on the complex task of burying people who had died of Ebola, a crucial yet dangerous task given how infectious dead bodies were. The work of the Red Cross SDB teams was further complicated by deeply valued traditional burial practices of washing and touching the dead, which contributed in the early stages of the outbreak to increased infection rates.

“To respond effectively, we had to change our entire approach to dealing with people who had died and their families,” said Elhadj As Sy, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). “We stopped talking about ‘dead body management’ and instead started talking about “safe and dignified burials’. We talked to communities and did our best to understand their beliefs and priorities. Ultimately, we earned their trust, and this was critical to success.”

In all, Red Cross teams managed over 47,000 safe burials, accounting for over 50 per cent of all burials conducted during the outbreak. The teams were made up entirely of local volunteers, who spoke local languages and who understood cultural norms and community dynamics. Around 1,500 trained volunteers were involved in this work. As a result of their efforts, many of them were stigmatized and threatened.

“This study reveals the vital role of communities and community-based organizations in the Ebola response,” said Dr Julie Hall, Chief of Staff and Special Advisor on Health at the IFRC. “The success of the SDB programme can be largely attributed to the Red Cross teams who were there before, during and after the outbreak. It was they who provided the basis for a response to the crisis that was both acceptable to local communities, and sustainable.”

IFRC is repeating its call for greater investment in strengthening local and community-level health capacity, including by investing in National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

“The 2017 Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo reminds us of how precarious global health is,” said Mr Sy. “International partners need to better harness and invest in local capacities, building on homegrown knowledge and skills, that will help communities respond, protect themselves and put an end to future health crises.

“The price tag on this investment is far less than the alternative: outbreaks that are deadlier and more expensive.”

The post Life-saving role of Red Cross volunteers during Ebola outbreak highlighted by new study. first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

The post Life-saving role of Red Cross volunteers during Ebola outbreak highlighted by new study. appeared first on MegaIcon Magazine.