More than 130 days into the latest Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), health experts said on Wednesday that response efforts have been scaled up significantly and “the first encouraging signs of progress” are now being seen.
In an update, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said that in the last 21 days, cases of infection fell by approximately 26 per cent in province of Ituri and by 15 per cent in the province of Haut Uele.
However, over the same period, North Kivu province recorded a 73 per cent increase, clearly indicating that the Ebola Bundibugyo outbreak has a different transmission profile in the seven affected provinces where it has been confirmed.
“While cases and theft are declining in some provinces, they continue to rise in others,” said WHO Regional Emergency Director for Africa, Dr Marie Roseline Belizaire.
“Those patterns show the outbreak is still not under control and remain spread across a wide geographic area. One of our greatest concerns is that too many people are still dying before reaching treatment.”
Dr Belizaire explained that around one in three new cases of infection are only identified after people have died outside Ebola treatment centres, in the community.
“These are lives that could potentially have been saved through earlier detection and timely access to care,” the WHO medic said, adding that every death in the community increases the risk of further transmission among family members, caregivers and others involved in traditional burial practices.
by UN News – DR Congo Ebola outbreak toll exceeds 3,700 deaths
