2014-07-02 16:28:00

African Health Ministers Meet to Coordinate Response to the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) Outbreak in West Africa


The World Health Organisation (WHO) says that eleven African countries are holding an emergency meeting in Ghana’s capital Accra this week to try and coordinate a regional response to the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa.

According to the WHO press release the combined death toll attributed to the Ebola Virus Disease in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone stood at 467 by Monday of 1 July 2014. This is out of a total 759 known cases.   Most of the deaths have happened in Guinea where the outbreak started

WHO has organized this high-level meeting for the Ministers of Health and other health officials in the sub-region, scheduled for 2–3 July 2014 in Accra, Ghana.  The eleven  African countries  include Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Uganda. Others attending the meeting are partners, donors, Ebola survivors, representatives of airlines and mining companies. The objective of the meeting is to analyse the situation, identify gaps, develop operational response plans, and to ensure increased political commitment and enhanced cross-border collaboration for EVD response activities among the countries in the sub-region.

It has been recognized that containment of this outbreak requires a strong response in the countries and especially along their shared border areas

Based on epidemiological analysis conducted by WHO, three major factors are contributing to patterns of transmission, which are currently responsible for the continuous propagation of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in the sub-region. These factors include transmission of EVD in rural communities, facilitated by strong cultural practices and traditional beliefs; transmission of EVD in densely populated peri-urban areas of Conakry in Guinea and Monrovia in Liberia; and cross-border transmission of EVD along the border areas of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, where commercial and social activities continue among the border areas of these countries.

Ebola is introduced into the human population through close contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals. In Africa, infection has been documented through the handling of infected chimpanzees, gorillas, fruit bats, monkeys, forest antelope and porcupines found ill or dead or in the rainforest.

 

Ebola then spreads in the community through human-to-human transmission, with infection resulting from direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes) with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and indirect contact with environments contaminated with such fluids.

 

If an outbreak is suspected, the premises should be quarantined immediately. Culling of infected animals, with close supervision of burial or incineration of carcasses, may be necessary to reduce the risk of animal-to-human transmission. Restricting or banning the movement of animals from infected farms to other areas can reduce the spread of the disease.

It is not always possible to identify patients with EBV early because initial symptoms may be non-specific. For this reason, it is important that health-care workers apply standard precautions consistently with all patients – regardless of their diagnosis – in all work practices at all times. These include basic hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment.

 

WHO is not recommending any travel or trade restrictions be applied to Guinea, Liberia, or Sierra Leone based on the current information available for this event.

 

Email: mediainquiries@who.int








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