A British citizen working as a healthcare provider in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has tested positive for Ebola and is undergoing evacuation to the United Kingdom for medical care, according to a government statement released on Wednesday. The patient is reported to be in stable condition and was expected to arrive in the UK on Wednesday or Thursday before being transported by specialist ambulance to a high-consequence infectious disease facility.
The worker was deployed to the DR Congo through a humanitarian organization to assist with outbreak response efforts. This marks the first instance of a British national contracting Ebola during the current outbreak. The UK maintains dedicated isolation units for treating infectious diseases such as Ebola, with facilities located at the Royal Free Hospital in London as well as centers in Newcastle and Liverpool.
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the DR Congo, declared on 15 May, has now exceeded 10,000 cases and resulted in approximately 5,000 deaths, making it the largest and deadliest outbreak recorded in the country’s history. The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo virus, for which no approved treatment currently exists, though vaccine trials are proceeding. The outbreak has spread beyond the DR Congo’s borders, reaching Kenya and Uganda in east Africa, while Nigeria reported a confirmed case in the capital Abuja after a woman arriving from Uganda tested positive.
According to Dr Jean Kaseya, director general of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, the geographic spread of the outbreak is unprecedented, with three African regions now affected for the first time. Health authorities in the UK maintain that the risk to the general public from imported cases remains low, and the National Health Service has established protocols for managing suspected and confirmed infections. British health security officials note that only four confirmed Ebola cases have been recorded in Britain since 1976.
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