Transmission of Ebola Persists

Last night 11 patients were signed out to the night crew, 7 of them were in the Confirmed Ward where 4 of these patients were related and from the same household.  The seven-day old baby boy was finally tested positive for Ebola and he died.  His immature immune system was likely overwhelmed by Ebola. 

Twenty-two-year-old Aminata lost her 5 month-old baby as well after she developed bloody diarrhea.  I could not discern any trace of sadness on her face but deep inside her heart she might be struggling with her loss.  She looked fatigued but had to remain strong for her two children; Ishmael and Emmanuel.  Last night they had diarrhea but there was no blood.  The children were weak, the younger one was still very afraid of us, shrinking from us when touched.  They were both receiving IV fluids and protein-rich food through naso-gastric tubes as they had been refusing to eat.  Their clinical status was touch- and-go.  Their grandfather, Emmanuel Senior, was also in the Confirmed Ward.  He looked elderly but strong now.

On her 13^th day in the ETC, pregnant RK remained relatively asymptomatic; in fact she had been so famished that she asked for more food.  When we rounded on her last night, she was sleeping and at the mention of “food”, she immediately jumped up looking for it.  She had a second Ebola test, she was still positive; she has not cleared the virus.

Jonah who shared the same room with Emmanuel Senior in the Suspect Ward was understandably concerned about his contact with him once he learned that Emmanuel senior was tested positive for Ebola.  Patients share rooms in the Suspected Ward here, unlike Bong ETU, where patients have their own rooms.

Ebola Sign in Waterloo

I am very happy with the progress made in Liberia in the fight against Ebola.  While Liberia discharged their last Ebola patients this week and has no new cases in the previous week; as of the week of March 1, Sierra Leone and Guinea reported 137 new cases, 34 more compared to the previous week.   The deadly Ebola virus is still widespread in Sierra Leone, recording 81 new cases, including 26 in the capital Freetown.  Contact tracing for immediate isolation and treatment remains crucially important in curtailing the spread of the outbreak.

Sunrise over the ETC

As the moon set in the western sky, the sun took its rightful place in the eastern sky and soon would show its dominance for the rest of the day.

  

Despite coming off night duty, in the late morning a colleague and I made our way for Bureh Beach to escape the heat of Bai-Suba where the electricity was turned off during the day.