Doctors Without Borders worker contracts Ebola in Congo, evacuated to Netherlands

AMSTERDAM – A Doctors Without Borders worker contracted Ebola while helping fight the Democratic Republic of Congo’s largest outbreak of the disease and is being evacuated to the Netherlands for treatment.

The staff member tested positive for Bundibugyo virus disease and is being evacuated under strict medical protocols in coordination with Congolese and Dutch health authorities, Doctors Without Borders, also known as Medecins Sans Frontieres, said in a statement on Oct 1.

Separately, a Montreal hospital isolated a patient with symptoms consistent with Ebola on Oct 1 and activated infection-control protocols while the case is investigated, CBC reported. The hospital said there was no identified risk to the public.

The aid worker’s infection underscores the risks in an epidemic that has sickened hundreds of medical personnel. About 254 health workers have been infected and 50 have died since the outbreak began, according to the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention.

Congo has recorded 8,224 confirmed infections and 3,982 deaths since the outbreak began in May, the National Institute of Public Health reported on Sept 30. Fifty-three new cases and 28 deaths were recorded on Sept 29, including 22 people who died in the community.

The outbreak remains difficult to contain despite an expanding response. Almost 80% of new infections are being detected among people who were not already on contact lists, Wessam Mankoula, who leads a joint Africa CDC-World Health Organization incident management support team, told reporters on Oct 1.

While Congo reported following 79% of listed contacts on Sept 29, Africa CDC estimates responders are reaching only about 23% of the number of contacts expected from known cases. Congo was monitoring more than 30,000 identified contacts that day.

“We cannot confidently say the outbreak is under control at this stage,” Mankoula said. BLOOMBERG