8 Aug 2014

Ebola outbreak declared a public emergency as clinics ‘paralysed’

Today the ongoing Ebola epidemic in west Africa was upgraded to a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern.”

That’s World Health Organisation (WHO) jargon that essentially means much more effort is urgently needed.

08_ebola_g_wThe pronouncement from Geneva was almost immediately underlined by another sharp rise in the number of cases in the outbreak.

Since yesterday 68 new cases and 29 deaths have been confirmed from Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Nigeria.

It’s now well accepted that the WHO was caught on the back foot by this outbreak and that more should have been done sooner. However, in the nearly 40-year history of the Ebola no outbreak has lasted more than a month or two. It seems everyone was expecting this one to burn itself out.

Only it hasn’t. Overall there have now been 1,779 cases and 961 deaths.

Today the WHO called for more action by health departments in affected countries, and more doctors, nurses and protective equipment to make its way to areas where the virus is being transmitted.

But it also emphasised the need for better communication about the disease. Fear is fuelling this outbreak.

Read: The deadly spread of Ebola – clickable map

People who suspect they or their families have Ebola are still very reluctant to go to clinics.

Today the WHO called for countries to make reassurances about the availability of treatment, as well as better local efforts to trace the contacts of those with the virus that will eventually stop it from spreading.

Usually upgrading a health emergency to a “PHEIC” immediately triggers international travel bans. But today international health experts congratulated the WHO on not calling for movement restrictions.

Personnel and equipment need to move freely in and out of the country. Already flight suspensions by airlines like British Airways’ cancellation of services to Freetown have been criticised for delaying the ability of agencies to react.

But it’s still very likely the outbreak will continue until the end of the year.

Though the virus has killed relatively few people across three countries, it’s close to paralysing some treatment clinics. Many healthcare workers have become infected and died, and staffing levels are critically low.

Fear among local people is still rife. Cases of infected people trying to escape from clinics and attacks on workers trying to trace contacts are still common.

Yesterday we reported on a man who was found collapsed in the centre of Conakry in the capital of Guinea,  suspected of having Ebola. We’ve been unable to confirm what happened to him, but the Associated Press reported that his family are thought to have taken him away.

If the man does have Ebola, it’s a good example of the challenge west Africa faces – until people are reassured that medical help could improve their chances of survival, each case will continue to lead to more.

Follow @TomClarkeC4 on Twitter