According to a representative of the World Health Organization (WHO), the actual number of Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is likely at least twice the official figures. WHO has confirmed at least 1,963 cases of the disease, with at least 719 fatalities.
Chikwe Ihekweazu, Executive Director of WHO’s Health Emergencies Programme, stated after visiting the region that most Ebola deaths occurred at home, not in medical facilities. “We believe that, based on our modeling, the actual number of cases may be 2-4 times higher than the officially detected cases,” Ihekweazu told journalists in Geneva on Tuesday.
As of July 12, 727 patients were undergoing treatment in Ebola treatment centers in the affected areas. Experts note that this is the fastest Ebola outbreak ever recorded on the continent.
Threat of medical workers’ strike
Efforts to contain the outbreak are facing increasing challenges as doctors and medical workers in the affected areas of the DRC have threatened to strike over unpaid wages. According to AFP, on Monday at an Ebola treatment center in Rwampara, one of the hardest-hit areas, medical workers burned a tire in protest and temporarily blocked access roads.
This facility is located in Ituri province, the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak, where at least 384 cases have been confirmed, including 89 deaths. The DRC’s National Institute of Public Health reported that as of Sunday, 112 cases of infection and 35 deaths had been confirmed among medical workers.
“Since May 15, we have been caring for Ebola patients for free. We continue to treat them in accordance with the medical oath, although we work in very difficult conditions,” Pascal Bahoya, a doctor at the center in Rwampara, told AFP on Monday. “Some colleagues are discouraged, but we continue to carry out our mission with a sense of professional duty,” added Jérémie Bataga, another doctor at the center.
The doctors explained that after a “48-hour ultimatum” regarding the payment of their salaries and bonuses, they would begin a “full strike”, meaning a complete work stoppage without minimal service until the situation changes. “We do not understand how we can go without pay for two months,” Bahati Claude, a medical worker at the hospital, told the Associated Press. “We do not want to abandon our work.”
The Congo Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba acknowledged “payment delays” and attributed them to “organizational issues.” During a visit to Ituri last week, Kamba said the government is verifying the list of those working to control the outbreak, as external names have been added to the payroll, AP reported. “We must ensure that these funds go to the people who are actually working to combat the outbreak,” Kamba said. “We have encountered several problems, including changes in the lists, which is why people who are actually working complain about not being paid. We have the opportunity to fix this.”
Lack of vaccine and international aid
The DRC declared its 17th Ebola outbreak on May 15. The current outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which there is currently no vaccine or approved treatment. International partners and African countries have mobilized $1.5 billion to support response measures to the outbreak in the DRC. Meanwhile, clinical trials of two experimental treatments are ongoing.
Five provinces in eastern Congo have been affected by the outbreak, including Chopo and Haut-Uélé, where the latest cases have been recorded. In addition, 20 cases, including two deaths, have been confirmed in Uganda, which borders the DRC.
Source: Al Jazeera
