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Sunday, September 23, 2018

Confirmed Ebola case near Ugandan Border

By Esther Nakkazi

The Ministry of Health in Uganda has confirmed a new case confirmed case of Ebola in DRC, in Kasenyi village, situated near the shores of Lake Albert on the DRC side of the border, in Ituri Province.

"The patient died on the 19th of September 2018, at Tchomia General Hospital which is quite close to Uganda," a ministry of Health press statement released on 23rd September says. However, it confirms that there is no confirmed case of Ebola in Uganda yet.

The patient who died was a contact between two previously confirmed cases (her mother and sister), thus a high-risk contact. She got lost to follow up when she moved to Kasenyi, later became very sick, and was admitted in Tchomia General Hospital where she later died.

A sample was taken from her and results released on the 21st September 2018 confirmed that it was positive for Ebola according to the WHO which says a team from Beni is currently on the ground to conduct an investigation of this case, identify and list all contacts for follow up, and initiate a response.

"We understand that there are population movements across the Lake Albert to Uganda hence a high risk of spread of the disease to Uganda. The Ministry of Health and Partners are supporting the districts bordering DRC to heighten preparedness and readiness to handle any Ebola case that might come into Uganda," says the Ministry of Health in Uganda.