Ebola outbreak ends in Guinea, says WHO
Baby Noubia, Guinea's last Ebola patient, was released from hospital in November
The World Health Organization (WHO)
has declared the end of the Ebola outbreak in Guinea, two years after
the epidemic began there.
Guineans are expected to celebrate the landmark with concerts and fireworks.
The
disease killed more than 2,500 people in the West African state, and a
further 9,000 in neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Liberia was declared Ebola-free by the WHO in September, and Sierra Leone in November.
However, Liberia has had new cases since the declaration.
A
country is considered free of human-to-human transmission once two
21-day incubation periods have passed since the last known case tested
negative for a second time.
"It's the best year-end present that
God could give to Guinea, and the best news that Guineans could hope
for," Ebola survivor Alama Kambou Dore told AFP news agency.
Local health workers echoed a warning from the WHO that vigilance was still vital despite the mood of celebration.
"We
have to be very careful, because even if open transmission has been
stopped, the disease has not been totally defeated," said Alpha Seny
Souhmah, a Guinean health worker and Ebola survivor.
Ad campaigns have run in countries affected by Ebola calling for an end to stigma
In a statement, the WHO congratulated the Guinean government and
people for showing "extraordinary leadership in fighting the epidemic".
But it also noted that there had been 10 new small outbreaks of the virus between March and November.
"The coming months will be absolutely critical," said Dr Bruce Aylward from the WHO's Ebola response team.
"This
is the period when the countries need to be sure that they are fully
prepared to prevent, detect and respond to any new cases."
The WHO
will maintain surveillance and outbreak response teams in Guinea,
Sierra Leone and Liberia throughout 2016, Dr Aylward added.
Analysis: Tulip Mazumdar, health correspondent, BBC News
This
is another major milestone in the bumpy road to the end of the worst
Ebola outbreak in history. It all started in Guinea when the virus
emerged, probably from fruit bats, in a rural community deep in the forest.
Guinea
saw far fewer cases than neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone, yet the
virus has been circulating there for longer than anywhere else.
I
remember travelling through Guinea at the height of the outbreak, and
there was still a lot of denial about Ebola; people told me it was a
made-up disease. Suspicion is still rife in some communities, and many
simply do not trust their government.
Ebola has made a comeback
in Liberia after the country twice declared the end of the epidemic, and
there is every possibility it could return to Guinea. It will be up to
communities to keep the killer virus at bay, by reporting suspicious
deaths and encouraging loved ones to seek treatment if they show
symptoms of Ebola.
But medical facilities also need to respond
quickly, which will happen for the extra 90-day "heightened
surveillance" period. A key question is what will happen after that,
particularly for the thousands of Ebola survivors who are still facing
health problems.
More than 100 health workers also lost their lives in the fight against the disease.
Many survivors still live in fear of the stigma and long-term side effects associated with the virus.
The
government in Guinea has blamed the virus for poor economic performance
and says it has also caused people to distrust the country's health
services.
President Alpha Conde has doubled the health budget since winning re-election in October.
Post a Comment