What Do Health Workers in Uganda Need to End the Current Ebola Outbreak?

By Tracy Kobukindo , Nurse and advocate ; David Bryden, Director of the Frontline Health Workers Coalition and senior policy and advocacy advisor at IntraHealth International Tracy Kobukindo is a registered nurse and advocate in Uganda. She also serves as a Frontline Health Workers Coalition Regional Advisor, helping to guide the Coalition ’s advocacy messages and policy recommendations. Photo by Tracy Kobukindo.November 03, 2022Health workers in Uganda are now at the forefront of responding to another serious infectious disease. Last month the country declared an Ebola outbreak, caused by the Sudan species of the virus. There’s no licensed treatment or vaccine for this strain of Ebola yet, and according to the World Health Organization (WHO), the mortality rate is greater than 41%. COVID-19 has magnified how critical health workers are for emergency response and global health security. Today, they identify people infected with Ebola, ensure they are isolated, and provide early treatment to save as many lives as possible. But for years, Uganda has faced a concerning shortage of health workers. The World Health Organization’sRegional Director for Africa said this shortage contributed to health workers not detecting the virus sooner, as well as its spread. The Minister of Health has urgently requested funding and support for more health workers who can safely contain and halt the outbreak.David Bryden, director of th...
Source: IntraHealth International - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: Tags: Policy & Advocacy Health Workers Nurses Source Type: news