By Mustapha Kamara Jnr
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday expressed concern over 48 missing Ebola contacts in Kambia and urged the government to intensify the search for them.
Its country representative, Dr Anders Nordstrom, said the continued absence of the missing contacts increased the risk of the spread of the virus. He was speaking at a press conference convened on the day of the release of some 73 people who were under quarantine in three districts in the north of the country.
These were related to the female index case who died early last month and sparked a resurgence of the epidemic about two months after the country was declared free of the virus.
Over a hundred contacts were identified and placed under quarantine across three districts – Tonkolili, Port Loko and Kambia.
Those missing were said to be from Kambia, where the index case is thought to have contracted the virus while on a visit.
Last week police and youths clash in Barmoi Luma, a town in Kambia, where residents were reluctant to obey Ebola restrictions occasioned by the flare-up.
WHO wants the government to intensify case search in health facilities and communities for the missing contacts. It has therefore recommended that health authorities ensure rapid response by, among others, reporting death alerts and promptly test specimen from live and dead individuals in suspected communities.
“In the coming 21 to 40 days, we need to strengthen surveillance efforts to identify and investigate all patients with symptoms meeting the case definition in the hospitals and communities and to investigate all deaths in Kambia and all districts,” the WHO representative said.
He said the world health agency would continue to ensure that all deaths reported were swabbed and tested until June 2016 to prevent a recurrence of the present situation.
The press conference was organised by the United Nations Inter-Agency Rapid Response Team and hosted at the United Nations Development Programs (UNDP) head office on Wilkinson Road in Freetown.
The quarantine period started on January 14. That was the beginning of a critical phase for the government and its partners in the fight to find and account for the missing contacts, said Dr Nordstrom.
“There is no punishment; we simply need to account for them to assure that they and their families are well,” he said.
Meanwhile, WHO said that the only contact that tested positive, the 38-year old aunty of the index case, was still responding to treatment at the 34 Military Hospital, while 4 others remained under close monitoring in quarantined homes.
(C) Politico 04/02/16
