Posts tagged outbreak

The Ebola outbreak that affected more than 28,000 people in West Africa is over, but the long-term impact is still felt and MSF is still responding to its aftermath. MSF nurse Carissa Guild has been involved in the Ebola response since 2014. She speaks about the lasting impact that Ebola has left in the West African region.

Watch the full video at https://youtu.be/I7EWNaaav0U 

“Throughout the epidemic, I witnessed how communities were ripped apart. But it was very empowering to see how extremely dedicated all the national staff were, and fortunately other international actors eventually got involved. For the next epidemic,...

“Throughout the epidemic, I witnessed how communities were ripped apart. But it was very empowering to see how extremely dedicated all the national staff were, and fortunately other international actors eventually got involved. For the next epidemic, the world should stand ready to intervene much faster and more efficiently” -Hilde de Clerck, MSF epidemiologist 

buff.ly/1OkK7Ni 

An Ebola outbreak occurred in the Ugandan area of Kibaalé at the end of July. MSF launched an emergency intervention to contain the spread of the virus, which has killed 16 people.

Fighting A Cholera Outbreak in Guinea and Sierra Leone

A cholera epidemic in the capitals of Guinea and Sierra Leone was declared in February. Our team has treated nearly 8,000 people in the two countries.

Vaccinating Against Cholera in Guinea More than 170,000 people in the Boffa region of Guinea recently became the first in Africa to receive a new two-dose oral vaccine for cholera, said MSF, which led the vaccination campaign. The initiative, MSF...

Vaccinating Against Cholera in Guinea

More than 170,000 people in the Boffa region of Guinea recently became the first in Africa to receive a new two-dose oral vaccine for cholera, said MSF, which led the vaccination campaign.

The initiative, MSF said, could spur an improved response to cholera epidemics worldwide. In collaboration with the Guinean Ministry of Health, MSF focused its response on Boffa, a coastal region near Conakry, which was considered a hotspot of the epidemic.

“We were faced with an outbreak and we wanted first to protect people by vaccinating them, and to limit the spread of cholera,” said Dr. Dominique Legros, MSF’s innovation initiative manager in Geneva. “MSF is regularly involved in responding to cholera outbreaks and it is always difficult to control the disease. Because cholera evolves quickly, oral vaccination provides us with a new tool to try to contain [it]. If we can control the most active spots, we can reduce the spread of cholera.”

Photo: An MSF patient takes a dose of the new oral cholera vaccine in Guinea. Guinea 2012 © David Di Lorenzo

With the reduction of our activities in Jebel Si, more than 100,000 people in the region are left entirely without healthcare. If we are not allowed to deliver medicines and supplies to our hospital and health posts soon, disease outbreaks are likely to occur, and maternal and prenatal deaths are likely to increase and may even reach emergency levels.

Alberto Cristina, Doctors Without Borders operational manager for Sudan.

As a result of increasing restrictions imposed by Sudanese authorities, Doctors Without Borders has been forced to suspend most of its medical activities in the Jebel Si region of North Darfur State in Sudan.

MSF health workers are seeing a 250 percent increase in the number of patients with malaria over the last three years in Democratic Republic of Congo and are now responding to outbreaks in six provinces.

For First Time in Africa, MSF Responds to Cholera Outbreak in Guinea With Mass Vaccination Campaign After a cholera epidemic broke out in Guinea, MSF began a mass vaccination campaign, the first time the organization has done so in Africa. At...

For First Time in Africa, MSF Responds to Cholera Outbreak in Guinea With Mass Vaccination Campaign

After a cholera epidemic broke out in Guinea, MSF began a mass vaccination campaign, the first time the organization has done so in Africa. At present, teams are vaccinating more than 150,000 people in the Boffa region, near the capital of Conakry, using an oral vaccine designed to protect those who take it from contracting the disease. The first two phases of this campaign began on April 18.

“The epidemic in Guinea was declared in February and Boffa Prefecture is currently where we are seeing the largest active outbreak,” said Charles Gaudry, head of mission for MSF in Guinea. “Since the beginning of the epidemic, 152 cases of cholera and six deaths have been reported. We aim to vaccinate around 155,000 people.”

Photo: Guinea 2012 © MSF
MSF staff delivering the cholera vaccine in Boffa Prefecture

Haiti: Medical Certificates for Cholera Patients

Since it was disclosed that the cholera epidemic that struck Haiti in 2010 was inadvertently brought to the island by a United Nations (UN) battalion from Nepal, many of the 500,000 people affected by the disease have requested certificates proving they were treated, in hopes of receiving compensation from the UN. MSF is providing thousands of former patients with medical certificates.

1996 MSF Movement Grows MSF-Norway is founded, joining additional MSF offices in Austria, Australia, Denmark, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, Greece, Sweden, and the UK. Meningitis Epidemic in Nigeria MSF vaccinates more than 4 million people against...

1996
MSF Movement Grows
MSF-Norway is founded, joining additional MSF offices in Austria, Australia, Denmark, Hong Kong, Japan, Germany, Greece, Sweden, and the UK.

Meningitis Epidemic in Nigeria
MSF vaccinates more than 4 million people against meningitis and creates special centers to treat thousands more who become infected in a massive epidemic outbreak.

Learn more about MSF’s history at our website.

Photo: Nigeria 1996 © Remco Bohle

Haiti: MSF Begins Cholera Intervention

Following an outbreak of cholera in Haiti’s Artibonite region, MSF teams rushed to the area to support the medical response and the effort to prevent the outbreak from spreading.