Can do better. Despite the contributions of China, the United States and Cuba, the international community is still not investing enough in the Ebola hemorrhagic fever control. West Africa is sorely lacking in medical teams as the death toll approaches 5,000 victims (4,818). China, the United States and Cuba have sent soldiers or doctors there, but these reinforcements are insufficient.
In the most affected countries of Nigeria, Liberia and Guinea, the transmission of the virus remains “persistent and widespread, particularly in the capitals”, described to the BBC Tony Banbury, head of the United Nations mission against Ebola in the region. In Monrovia, for example, the capital of Liberia, the transmission of the virus is currently accelerating after having declined slightly.
The emergency, according to the United Nations envoy, is to reach the goal of 70% of beds for Ebola patients. The road is long … Of the 4,707 beds expected in the Ebola treatment centers in the field, only 22% are operational. In question, the delay in the supply and lack of caregiversforeigners.
Health systems to be rebuilt
The solution to mastering the management of beds would be to reduce the number of infected people, according to Tony Banbury. But this is where the shoe pinches. The UN is showing its pessimism about the ability to overcome the virus at present. “We are not there yet. There are still people, villages, towns and entire areas that do not have access to any kind of aid, says Tony Banbury. The international community does not give us the possibility. to react on the ground “.
The priority remains to find the means to curb contamination by the virus. But post-Ebola should be another big challenge. Indeed, the question will arise of rebuilding health infrastructure in countries like Sierra Leone where the health system is almost non-existent.
