The government of Rwanda has stepped up efforts to prepare for a possible outbreak of Ebola, with the highly dangerous disease continuing to spread in neighbouring Uganda, where by the weekend, 58 cases – and some 19 deaths – had been confirmed in at least five districts. Uganda, a key trade partner for Rwanda, has since imposed measures to contain the virus not just in the five districts, but also to other parts of the country. Since the first case was confirmed in the neighbouring country, Rwanda has been on high alert to ensure the outbreak is arrested at the earliest opportunity possible and to minimize the exposure of citizens where possible. Among the measures include the latest drills conducted at King Faisal Hospital – the national referral – where medics on Monday, October 17 carried out a simulation exercise to guide them on how to conduct themselves in case they register a case. Such drills have been ongoing for some time now, having started from hospitals near borders to exposed neighbouring countries. Other measures include establishment of testing centres for Ebola at all regional referral hospitals. So far, no case has been registered on Rwandan territory, so all the measures are mostly contingencies. However, despite the preparedness by government and our medical personnel to handle any such cases in the eventuality that they, by bad luck, end up being registered in the country, the biggest burden lies on us the citizens. Personal caution is very important in the fight against such outbreaks and this starts with the appreciation of the seriousness of this epidemic, which currently has no vaccine – mainly for the variant identified in Uganda – and whose fatality WHO estimates to be at 50 per cent. It therefore calls for measures including avoiding unnecessary travel to affected areas and adhering to safety precautions in place to contain the spread of the deadly virus. The good news is that Rwandans have demonstrated their will to work with our government and medical personnel to keep at bay such outbreaks, case in point is when the similar outbreak was reported – on multiple occasions – in the neigbouring DR Congo.
