Tackling the Ebola epidemic in West Africa: Africa needs a holistic approach

Lazarus Sauti

Ebola virus, the horrific disease that causes the body’s internal organ to bleed and almost melt away, is ravaging countries in West Africa. The outbreak, which began in Guinea either late last year or early this year, had appeared to slow before picking up pace again in recent weeks.

It has been linked to around 330 deaths in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, according to the latest numbers from the World Health Organisation, specialised agency of the United Nations that is concerned with international public health.

In “Epidemiological update: Outbreak of Ebola Virus in West Africa”, WHO Africa further said that at least 567 infections and 350 deaths have been reported.

Journalists Adama Diarra and Misha Hussain note that in addition to the loss of life, the outbreak is also having an economic effect. “Conakry’s Palm Camayenne Hotel, which is popular among businessmen and politicians, has less than a third of occupancy rate. On Brussels Airlines flights between the Brussels and Conakry, there are reduced numbers of people arriving in Conakry but more people leaving Conakry.

“Regional airline Gambia Bird delayed the start of a route to Conakry due to Senegal closing “its border with Guinea because of the outbreak,” they said.

Spokesperson for the World Health Organisation Fadela Chaib said that multiple locations of the outbreak and its movement across borders made it one of the ‘most challenging Ebola outbreaks ever’.

Armand Sprecher, a public health specialist with Doctors Without Borders – an international medical humanitarian organisation working in more than 60 countries to assist people whose survival is threatened by violence, neglect, or catastrophe, agrees: “This is the highest outbreak on record and has the highest number of deaths, so this is unprecedented so far. The Ebola crisis is ‘out of control’ and the outbreak is likely to spread if leaders do not step up assistance.”

Naomi Marks, Communications Officer of the Dynamic Drivers of Disease in Africa Consortium, a consortium of researchers from 20 institutions in Africa, Europe and America undertaking a major Ecosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation- funded programme to advance understanding of the connections between disease and environment in Africa, also believes Ebola crisis is ravaging Africa and therefore urged cross-sector collaboration and integrated research to manage the disease among African countries.

Marks said there is a crucial need for multidisciplinary working over the longer term to gain a holistic understanding of the drivers of these diseases, and called for collaborative efforts between natural and social scientists – including doctors, vets, environmental scientists, geographers and anthropologists – at local, national and international levels.

The Communications Officer further urged the World Health Organisation to support affected governments by prodding leaders to take necessary action.

Sharing same sentiments, Sprecher said: “The World Health Organisation must support governments’ efforts by bringing more experts to do the vital work of tracing all of the people who have been in contact with the sick. More manpower would certainly help.”

International organisations along with governments in West Africa should also increase awareness about how to stop the spread of the disease.

“In the absence of effective treatment and a human vaccine, raising awareness of the risk factors for Ebola infection and the protective measures individuals can take is the only way to reduce human infection and death,” explained the World Health Organisation.

To effective arrest the Ebola crisis, health-care workers must also apply standard precautions consistently with all patients – regardless of their diagnosis – in all work practices at all times. Precautions should take basic hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment, safe injection practices and safe burial practices.

More so, health-care workers caring for patients with suspected or confirmed Ebola virus should apply, in addition to standard precautions, other infection control measures to avoid any exposure to the patient’s blood and body fluids and direct unprotected contact with the possibly contaminated environment.

As information is power, it is critical for communities affected by Ebola to inform members about the nature of the disease and outbreak containment measures, including burial of the dead.

Community opinion leaders must take a leading role in informing community members that people who have died from Ebola should be promptly and safely buried to halt the spread of the disease.

There is also a serious need for real political commitment, otherwise the disease will continue to spread, and for sure it will spread and affect more Africans.

Scientists and health researchers in the African continent should also quickly work on a variety of vaccines that would protect people from Ebola viruses.

However, Tolbert Nyenswah, Liberia’s deputy minister of health believes the only way to successfully stop the Ebola’s spread is to persuade people to come forward when symptoms occur and to avoid touching the sick and dead.

“There is still not a real change of behavior of the people. So a lot of sick people still remain in hiding or continue to travel. And there is still news that burial practices are remaining dangerous,” he said.