Another health worker succumbs to Ebola
Frontline workers attending to patients at the Ebola Treatment Unit at Mubende regional refferal hospital. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
- Ms Margaret Nabisubi, an anesthetic officer becomes the fourth health worker to succumb to Ebola ever since its outbreak was announced last month
The Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) has killed another health worker as the country struggles to contain the spread of the virus, the Health Ministry has reported.
Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, the Health Minister announced the death of Ms Margaret Nabisubi, an anesthetic officer, Wednesday morning.
"The 58-year-old succumbed to Ebola at 4.33am this morning at Fort Portal Hospital (JMedic) after battling the disease for 17 days," Dr Aceng said in a tweet.
She added: "The late Margaret is the 4th health worker we have lost in the current Ebola outbreak after the probable case of the midwife, Dr. Mohammed Ali and the health assistant in Kagadi District. May their souls rest in eternal peace."
The death of health workers comes a week after President Museveni said the disease is easy to contain.
Since the outbreak was announced last month, the confirmed cases had increased from 1 to 43 and the deaths have also increased from 1 to 9 as of Tuesday.
The case-fatality rate for the disease ranges from 25 percent to 90 percent, according to the World Health Organisation. This is higher than that of Covid-19, whose case-fatality rate is at around 3 percent.
According to the Health Ministry, EVD is transmitted through contact with the blood, stool or fluids of an infected person and objects that have been contaminated with body fluids from an infected person.
One can also contract the disease through contact with blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected animals such as fruit bats and other wild animals.
The known symptoms of Ebola include high body temperatures, fatigue, chest pain, diarrhoea, vomiting, unexplained bleeding, yellowing of the eyes. Bleeding is usually a late presentation after the above symptoms, according to the Health Ministry.
