After a new case of Ebola was detected in the Malian capital, Bamako, on November 11, Doctors Without Borders/Médécins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has reinforced its team and expanded its activities to help stop the disease from spreading further.
Swift and coordinated action is of paramount importance in stemming any new outbreak, especially in the first days after a new case is detected, MSF warns. So far there have been six reported deaths in Mali during the outbreak, from four confirmed cases of Ebola and two suspected cases. These figures do not include the first case, a two-year-old girl who was traveling from Guinea to the Malian town of Kayes.
One patient with Ebola who was being treated at MSF's case management center died today. A patient suspected of having Ebola is currently admitted at the center, which MSF is running in collaboration with CNAM (Mali’s national disease center.)
MSF is training Malian staff from CNAM in the management of Ebola patients while overseeing the implementation of an ambulance system for transporting patients and the organization of safe burials. MSF is also involved in tracing the contacts of those who may have been affected by the disease, in coordination with the Malian authorities and the World Health Organization.
Meanwhile, an MSF team is planning to travel to the area bordering Guinea, where new cases of Ebola have been detected, to determine the needs there.
MSF’s activities in Bamako were reinforced last week with a team arriving from Kayes, where the first Ebola case in Mali was detected.
