The World Health Organization (WHO) has stressed the need for vigilance across Kenya after the country announced its second Ebola case on Wednesday.
Kenya’s health ministry said that the patient, a 39-year-old man, was a close relative of the first case and had already been quarantined.
In a statement on Friday, WHO Representative Neema Rusibamayila Kimambo congratulated Kenya for taking the important step of ensuring that contacts were listed and quarantined.
“We all have a role to play. To defeat this disease, it’s not about the Government, it is not about partners It is about everybody. We all have a role to play and if each one of us plays our part, then we should be able to contain the disease and stop community spread,” Ms Kimambo said.
She commended health authorities who “cast the net very wide” to identify people who had come into contact with him, whether in the air or on the ground.
According to her, WHO and the Kenyan government were stepping up Ebola preparedness after the outbreak was declared in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in May.
“We are building on the work that we started during the preparedness phase, so case management and IPC (infection prevention and control) are critical at this time in the quarantine centres,” she added.
She explained that WHO also continued to provide assistance to Kenya in various other ways, noting that the UN agency had donated supplies worth about $70,000, including IPC and laboratory items, since the first Ebola case was identified.
While noting that there was still no need to impose travel restrictions or close national borders, Ms Kimambo underlined the importance of appropriate screening to identify travellers who might pose a health risk.
“I think one is not to over panic and be very fearful because we do not have community spread,” she said. “But two, let us be responsible. Whoever is sick, let’s make sure we go to a health facility and get care. And also, let us ensure that we take IPC measures.”
More than 4,000 people have been killed by the deadly virus, which has ravaged the DRC in the past few months.
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