icon
Leave a message
google.com, pub-4988895920620082, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Ebola Virus Remains Tough And Deadly But May Be Won This Year - UN Mission Chief


The world can stamp out the Ebola outbreak in West Africa by the end of the year but months of tough work remain, the outgoing chief of the United Nations' anti-Ebola mission said on Friday.


The outbreak, first identified in Guinea's remote southeast in early 2014, has struck six West African nations, with Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia bearing the brunt of the 20,000 infections and nearly 8,000 dead.

Faced with criticism the world was not doing enough, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon set up the U.N. Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER) mission in September to coordinate global efforts.
"We have not come anywhere close to ending the crisis.

We’ve done a lot in 90 days in a very successful response but we have a long and difficult way to go," Anthony Banbury told reporters in Accra, where the U.N. mission is based.

"It's going to go on for not just weeks but some months more. But I believe we will do it in 2015 and we’re going to do it by working very closely not just with governments of the countries but the communities," he said.

Banbury will be replaced by veteran humanitarian official Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania on Saturday.

A spike of cases in Sierra Leone meant UNMEER missed its target of ensuring that by early December 70 percent of all Ebola patients were being treated in isolation units and 70 percent of all those who died from Ebola were buried properly.

Banbury said there were now enough functioning treatment centers in the region.
The target of 100 percent safe burials by end of January 2015 was on track now that there were some 254 safe burial teams operating in the affected countries.

Six other countries, including Nigeria, Senegal, Mali, the United States, Spain and Britain, have reported cases imported from the worst affected countries.

Last week, a nurse was diagnosed with the virus in Britain upon her return from Sierra Leone. She is being treated with blood plasma from a survivor of the virus and an experimental antiviral drug, according to the London hospital treating her.

MEDICALDAILY

Related Posts:

  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Causes, Effects and Remedies What Is Inflammatory Bowel Disease? Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) refers to chronic conditions that cause inflammation in some part of the intestines. The intestinal walls become swollen, inflamed, and develop ulcers, … Read More
  • Kidney DiseaseKIDNEY DISEASE Chronic kidney disease is also known as chronic renal disease, is a progressive loss in renal function over a period of months or years. The symptoms of worsening kidney function are non-specific, and might i… Read More
  • Dietary Supplements Diabetes and Dietary Supplements As the incidence of diabetes increases to epidemic proportions, people with diabetes are turning more and more to alternative therapies to help manage this condition, des… Read More
  • Facts about sexually transmitted diseases Genital Warts (HPV) You don't have to have sex to get an STD. Skin-to-skin contact is enough to spread HPV, the virus family that causes genital warts. Some types cause warts and are usually harmless, but others may lead t… Read More
  • Appendicitis: Inflammation, Pain and Symptoms What is the appendix? The appendix is a closed-ended, narrow tube up to several inches in length that attaches to the cecum (the first part of the colon) like a worm. (The anatomical name for the appendix, vermiform app… Read More

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *