OMM Newsroom
A British health worker who contracted Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is being evacuated to the United Kingdom for specialist care, British officials said, AnewZ reported.
The unnamed patient was working on a humanitarian mission supporting the country’s response to the Ebola outbreak. Officials said the patient was in stable condition and would be treated at a facility specialising in highly infectious diseases after arriving in the UK. Special medical transport has been arranged to ensure the transfer is carried out safely.
The UK government confirmed that the health worker tested positive for Ebola in the Congo. A government spokesperson said: “A British national currently in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has tested positive for Ebola,” adding that health authorities do not consider the case a serious threat to public health in the UK.
Officials said the transfer was not expected to affect international travel or trade.
First British national infected in current outbreak
The health worker is the first British national known to have contracted Ebola during the current outbreak in the Congo. Infections among citizens of European countries have also been recorded during the outbreak.
Earlier this year, France said Ebola had been detected in a doctor returning from a humanitarian mission in the Congo. Switzerland recently evacuated a patient from Nigeria for treatment.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said it had supported several medical evacuations during the outbreak at the request of governments and aid organisations, but did not comment on the specific case.
The ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has become the second-largest recorded worldwide. More than 10,000 infections have been confirmed, and about 5,000 people have died since the outbreak began. Health officials are struggling to contain the virus, which has spread to several provinces.
Ebola is transmitted through direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person and can cause severe illness, including fever, internal bleeding and organ failure. According to the WHO, the average fatality rate is about 50%; the chances of survival vary depending on the outbreak and access to treatment.
Imported infections are rare in Britain
According to the UK Health Security Agency, only four confirmed Ebola infections have been recorded in the country since the virus was first identified in 1976.
British health officials said specialist isolation units and established emergency procedures are in place to manage suspected or confirmed cases and reduce the risk of the virus spreading.
The health worker’s transfer highlights the risks faced by those on the front line of humanitarian aid and international efforts to respond to large-scale infectious disease outbreaks.
