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WHO issues roadmap to guide response to Ebola outbreak
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WHO has issued a “roadmap” to guide the international response to the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, with a goal to stop Ebola transmission in the affected countries within 6 to 9 months and to prevent international spread.
The roadmap includes three main objectives. The first is to achieve full coverage with Ebola response activities in the affected countries. The milestones include stopping new cases in infected areas within 3 months, stopping transmission in capital cities and major ports, and stopping residual transmission within 6 to 9 months.
The second objective is ensure emergency application of Ebola response interventions in new countries with an initial case or localized transmission, with the milestone of stopping all transmission of the disease within 8 weeks of the index case.
Lastly, the third objective is to ensure preparedness of all countries to detect and respond to Ebola exposure rapidly, especially in countries that share land borders with affected areas and those that have international transportation hubs. The milestone for this is full Ebola surveillance and response plans established in these areas within 1 month.
According to a WHO statement, the roadmap is a response to the need to scale up international response to the outbreak, and it will serve as a framework to update operational plans. Priority is being given to needs for treatment and management centers, social mobilization and safe burials.
Plans will be based on site-specific data outlined in regular situation reports, which will include information on hotspots, epidemiologic data and information known about treatment facilities and laboratories.
The entire Ebola Response Roadmap can be viewed by clicking here.