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Ebola outbreak 'over by August', UN suggests

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BBC   by  Smitha Mundasad                                                                                        March 23, 2015

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa will be over by August, the head of the UN Ebola mission has told the BBC.

 

 Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed admitted the UN had made mistakes in handling the crisis early on, sometimes acting "arrogantly".

A year after the outbreak was officially declared, the virus has killed more than 10,000 people...

The head of the UN Ebola response mission told the BBC, when the virus first struck, "there was probably a lack of knowledge and there was a certain degree of arrogance, but I think we are learning lessons.

"We have been running away from giving any specific date, but I am pretty sure myself that it will be gone by the summer."

Read complete story.
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-32009508

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THE TORONTO STAR COMMENTARY by Stephen Cornish                                                 March 22, 2015
...The notion that the Ebola crisis has ended is premature. Until we get to zero cases on the ground in West Africa, it will not be over. The fact that case numbers in some areas are actually going up rather than down shows we are not there yet — which makes it disturbing that some seem willing to already declare victory over this epidemic. Unless we renew our efforts at this critical moment, we run the risk of squandering the hard-fought gains made to date. Our job is not yet done.

...Just like with a raging forest fire, Ebola’s flames seem to be in retreat, and the overwhelming heat has simmered down. But now the real work must begin, with hot spots identified and overturned so that the underlying embers can be stamped out. Walking away now, with the job half done, will only leave us at the mercy of the next spark.

Read complete article.
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2015/03/22/too-early-to-declare-victory-in-fight-against-ebola.html

DEUTSCHE WELLE  by  Manasi Gopalakrishnan                                           March 23, 2015

There is no way to tell when exactly the Ebola outbreak will be over in Africa, says Margaret Harris from the WHO. International organizations learned too late about the spread of the disease, she also noted.....

DW: The UN Ebola chief told British media that the outbreak would be over by August this year. Do you think that is realistic?

Margaret Harris: We don't make specific predictions. One thing we've learned from this outbreak is, every time you think it's over, another wave starts up. So it really won't be over until every one of the three countries has had no cases for 42 days. And even then, it won't be over. Even then, for the next six months, they will have to maintain a very very high level of vigilance. By that I mean, that they test everybody who's even got any suggestion that they may have symptoms of Ebola.

One of the really important things we're doing now, and will continue to do, is to work very hard with the countries affected and with other countries to strengthen their health systems.

Read complete story.

http://www.dw.de/who-says-no-way-to-predict-when-ebola-will-be-over/a-18334781

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