EBOLA REPORTEDLY STRIKES AGAIN
The Sunday Vision has confirmed rumours emerging late last week that a case of Ebola has been identified. The reported alpha patient is said to have died in the Bombo Military Hospital some 60 kilometres outside the capital Kampala, and about three dozen individuals are now said to be under quarantine and monitored for any signs of the outbreak of the disease. The case was confirmed when a blood sample was tested positive for Ebola at the Atlanta based Centre for Disease Control or in short CDC by mid last week, but the information itself had started spreading even before the results were in, prompting the Ministry of Health to immediately form a task force with the objectives to find the origin of the outbreak, identify contact persons and contain them in isolation units of hospitals or at home. The last outbreak in 2007 in Western Uganda, when some 37 people died out of almost 150 infected patients. The relatively low death ratio was attributed to the swift reaction of the Ugandan health task force in conjunction with their international partners which included staff from the WHO and the CDC at the time. Most outbreaks in the past have been originating in the deep of the Eastern Congolese rainforests and jungles and are being ‘brought’ to neighbouring countries out of ignorance by the infected individuals and the absence of any trained health personnel able to spot the disease and raise the alert.
Officials have already made it clear that tourist and business visitors do not need to worry as containment measures have been put in place several days ago already as they are in any case very unlikely to encounter anyone infected an not yet put into quarantine.
Watch this space for more news if you intend to come to Uganda in the near future or watch out for official statements being posted by government on the official Uganda website or the tourist board website www.visituganda.com where a separate statement is expected to be published very soon.
