Uganda has assured tourists that there
is no cause for fear or alarm following the Ebola outbreak in the east African
country that started in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
According to the minister
of state for tourism the index case in the western district of Kasese was
isolated and that all the family members and relatives have been found hence
the country was safe and there was no cause for alarm or even to issue travel
advisories. The minister also said that the country has the capacity to contain
all the outbreaks that may affect it.
According to
the World Health Organization and the Ugandan Ministry of Health, the crisis of
Ebola that began on June 9th 2019 was the first case of Ebola in
Uganda since the latest outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo was
confirmed on June 11, 2019, by the Ugandan Minister, Dr. Jane Ruth Aceng and this
was a five-year-old boy and the first case since an outbreak in the neighboring
Democratic Republic of Congo 10 months ago.
There were a total of three confirmed cases of the Ebola
Virus Disease in Uganda and all three had recently traveled to the DRC and all the
three victims succumbed to the disease. In response a total of 108 of their relatives
and contacts were registered followed up and another 980 people who were at
high risk of Ebola vaccinated.
Uganda has
also put in place different measures in order to keep the disease at bay and
they include the following;
a)
Uganda maintains
enhanced surveillance and has a response system in place to deal
comprehensively with Ebola
b)
The airports and
border posts are conducting relevant entry screening.
c)
The National Task
Force has been activated, and rapid response teams have traveled to districts
closest to the affected provinces in DRC and the Key activities include
- Public health risk mapping to assess movement patterns,
- Enhanced surveillance, screening, and hand washing at
points of entry in high-risk districts,
-
Alerting other
communities about the need for enhanced monitoring, and assessing preparedness
in high-risk areas.
Since then
there has been no new confirmed cases of Ebola in Uganda since that incident.
Precautions you can take to avoid
Ebola
§ Avoid
contact with other people’s blood or body fluids, which includes sexual
contact.
§ Do
not handle items that may have come in contact with a person’s blood or body
fluids (such as clothes, bedding, needles, and medical equipment).
§ Avoid
contact with wild animals or with raw bush meat.
§ Avoid
funeral or burial rituals that require handling a dead body.
§ Do not panic and do not take clients to any large
gatherings which include Hospitals, Churches, Schools, and political gatherings
especially in high risk areas or regions.
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