This is again tough news. A bit -- and the full local paper's link:
. . . .Uganda will begin administering the experimental Ebola vaccine to approximately 2,000 health care and front-line workers along its border with the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday, the Ministry of Health said.
Uganda has no confirmed cases of Ebola, but as the threat worsens in the DRC, the preventive measure is seen as necessary because of heavy border traffic. More than 20,000 people cross from the DRC into Uganda and back every week, the ministry says.
"The public high risk of cross-border transmission of Ebola to Uganda was assessed to be very high at national level," said Jane Ruth Aceng, Uganda's minister for health. "Hence, the need to protect our health workers with this vaccine. Currently in Uganda, we have 2,100 doses of the vaccine available at the National Medical Stores and preparations are in high gear, including training of the health workers that are to be targeted. . . ."
Safe burials and safety, personally, for the workers deployed in Beni, DRC remain daunting obstacles -- making arresting this outbreak look rather unlikely, as of this morning.
Onward now -- to criss cross the middle of the nation (road trip!), and flip some seats from red to blue.
Onward. Back on Tuesday by noon. Be excellent to one another, whilst I'm off-grid.
नमस्ते
1 comment:
On a brighter note, as of November 1, 2018, over 25,300 in DRC, and now Uganda, have been vaccinated with the Merck candidate.
The Merck / NewLink / HealthCanada vaccine appears 100 per cent effective, and is durable -- no one vaccinated (in three full years, to date) has to date bloomed into an afflicted patient.
So -- when and where the health workers can reach the rings of contacts, the triage will work -- but once again this week, about one half of the new cases were not connected to any existing known chain.
So still much to be done.
Onward -- ever, onward.
Namaste,
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