Health workers in protective gear pose at the entrance to the Ebola treatment unit of the John F. Kennedy Medical Centre in the Liberian capital, Monrovia, on October 13, 2014. About 170 Kenyan health workers are set to leave for Sierra Leone and Liberia on Friday as part of the African Union (AU) mission to contain Ebola in West Africa FILE PHOTO.
About 170 Kenyan health workers are set to leave for Sierra
Leone and Liberia on Friday as part of the African Union (AU) mission to
contain Ebola in West Africa.
The volunteer health workers, drawn across the 47 counties, will be in West Africa for six months.
They
have been trained on the prevention and management of the haemorrhagic
fever by the Ministry of Health, World Health Organisation and other
partners.
Comprising medical doctors, nurses and other public health officials, they are expected to offer various medical services such as care givers and laboratory workers depending on their skills and the needs on the ground.
Comprising medical doctors, nurses and other public health officials, they are expected to offer various medical services such as care givers and laboratory workers depending on their skills and the needs on the ground.
Their deployment comes as over 5,000 health workers are required to effectively fight the disease, according to the World Bank.
OFFICIAL FLAG-OFF
Before their departure in two chartered Kenya Airways flights at midday, the workers will meet with President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House for their official flag off.
Before their departure in two chartered Kenya Airways flights at midday, the workers will meet with President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House for their official flag off.
Health Cabinet Secretary James
Macharia said on Thursday that the demographics of the workers such as
their skills, gender among others will be shared at the send-off event.
He
was presiding over the pre-deployment ceremony in Nairobi attended by
Foreign Affairs CS Amina Mohammed and representatives of the AU.
“With
over 700 applicants, we are proud to send this first batch of about
170, my troops of health workers, who will be on their way to assist in
tackling this international crisis. They have made a sacrifice for
humanity, we cannot thank them enough. Kenya is proud of you,” he said.
He
added: “I am grateful to the Council of Governors for facilitating the
recruitment of these heath personnel from the various counties. It is
highly appreciated.”
20,000 EBOLA INFECTIONS
According
to WHO, there have been over 20,000 Ebola infections and about 8,220
deaths since the outbreak in Guinea in December 2013.
As of January 4, a total of 838 health-care workers are known to have been infected with Ebola, 495 of who have died.
The organisation notes that the fatality rate of Ebola-infected health care workers is about 57 per cent.
The
director of social affairs at AU, Dr Olwale Maiyegun, said the
deployment was part of a larger AU banner, the African Union Support of
the Ebola Outbreak in West Africa.
He said: “The
Kenyan team will join other health workers from Nigeria and Ethiopia for
about 18 weeks in Ebola Treatment Units. They will all have a
comprehensive medical cover in case of Ebola infection, disability,
evacuation or any other diseases. Plus, a timeline of their work is in
place.”
As this was happening, representatives from
research institutions, government officials from the Ebola-affected and
partners were meeting in Geneva, Switzerland to review the current
status of clinical trials of Ebola vaccines.
The two
CSs are expected to visit the Kenyan workers in Sierra Leone and
Liberia, weeks after the teams settle in the respective countries.
No comments:
Post a Comment