The Ebola epidemic may not end by June, as suggested by the ‘Plos Biology’, but the nation is making progress in the fight against the virus, to the point of assisting nearby Sierra Leone, where the situation is more critical.
A group of 20 aid workers and medical experts arrived in Freetown from Monrovia in an aim to contain the epidemic “within two weeks”: they are part of the First Responders Emergency Medical Services, which is among the groups formed after the outbreak of the epidemic. The logic followed by the delegation, explained the coordinator, Saad Joseph, is that “we cannot consider ourselves 100% freed until also our brothers and sisters in nearby nations have defeated the virus”. Joseph has a special tie with Sierra Leone, where he lived for over 15 years as a refugee during the Liberian civil war.
The initiative was applauded by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, describing it “wonderful news”. Liberia registered the highest death toll since the Ebola outbreak, with nearly 3,500 on 8,200 dead: there has been a reduction in cases to less than 10 a day. Sierra Leone, though with a lower number of deaths (2,943), still registers an average of 20 new cases a day.
Near Sierra Leone’s capitlal, in Kissy, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) opened a first center dedicated to pregnant women affected by the hemorrhagic fever. The center will initially host 20 patients, but the capacity will increase by the end of January.
[DM/BO]
