Liberia News

Last week saw a welcome boost to numbers of treatment places available to people with Ebola in Monrovia, Liberia. The Island Clinic, a private clinic refurbished as an Ebola Treatment Unit by the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare with support from WHO and other partners, opened its doors on Sunday 21 September, adding another desperately needed 120 Ebola treatment beds to the 240 available in Monrovia.

Monrovia, 20 March 2015 - To curb reemergence of unsafe burial practices, the Mandingo Community, (one of the tribes in Liberia) through its leaders has held community consultation dialogue to seek consensus on accommodating community needs while reducing risk of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) transmission. One solution sought was the training of select members of the community to conduct safe burials. The burial team would comprise of six community volunteers, a mix of women and men, and an Imam (a worship leader of the mosque).

Her Excellency, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf launched the “No new cases campaign” in New Georgia Community, Montserrado County, Monrovia, Liberia. 08/12/14

President Sirleaf and entourage entered the Christ Kingdom Harvest Church, where the program was held. At the far end, the President was washing her hands in 0,05% chlorine solution. 
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Only people who have been sick with Ebola virus disease and recovered from this traumatic experience can explain what it was like and what their needs were during the illness. That is why a group of 6 Ebola survivors were asked to play a critical role in a new training programme for health workers on Ebola care, which was established by WHO in consultation with the Ministry of Health and with support from USAID.

As Liberia continues to count down to the 42 days mark to be declared Ebola-free, since the last confirmed EVD case tested twice negative on March 03,  2015, the Ministry of Health of Liberia in collaboration with WHO and other partners is focusing on ensuring that healthcare workers remain safe as they continue to provide care. Today, the Acting Minister of Health, Dr Bernice Dahn launched a training package designed to empower health workers to remain safe while providing quality care to patients in health care facilities (HCFs) and in Ebola Treatment Units (ETU).

17 November 2014 -- Dead bodies can be very contagious when it comes to Ebola, but that does not mean that every deceased person has died due to the disease. In order to speed up the process of identifying the cause of death of each patient, WHO is working closely with the Liberia Institute for Biomedical Research to train burial teams on how to collect an oral swab from deceased patients safely.

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At the Island Clinic in Monrovia, Liberia the discharge of a patient who has recovered from Ebola virus disease inspires joy among all the health workers at the facility. Every life saved is another boost to morale.

“As we see fewer people dying, the health workers are becoming more confident about their work,” says Dr Atai Omoruto, a Ugandan doctor deployed to Liberia by WHO and is serving as officer in charge at the clinic.

Monrovia, 16 March 2015 - As Liberia marks the second week of Zero cases of Ebola, the Cuban medical team through the Cuban Government Health Attaché announced conclusion of the team’s successful Ebola Response mission in the country. The Attaché was addressing a ceremony organized by the Ministry of Health in partnership with UNMEER, World Health Organization and US CDC to bid farewell to the team.

14 November 2014 - Monrovia, Liberia. Today, Dr Bruce Aylward, head of the Ebola Response Team at the World Health Organization, wraps up a four-day visit to Liberia to get a better understanding of the Ebola response activities on the ground.

While the number of new cases appears to be declining, with reported cases in the capital city going down from 75 to 25 new cases per day, a mixed picture emerges in different counties.

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Pupils of Deaf and Dumb School showing sign of ‘I love you’ to Professor Davidson Munodawafa following a talk on keeping Ebola out of the community
 

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Prof.  Davison Munodawafa demonstrating hand-washing at the Deaf and Dumb School in Virginia, Montserrado
 

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A young girl displaying the sign language of ‘l love you’, the others are looking at the interpreter on the other side
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Training of gCHVs in Rural Montserrado
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Chatting with other colleagues during lunch break