News Source
EXCERPT:
We currently face an Ebola epidemic in Africa, and it doesn’t help that health facilities are being attacked by mobs. The region where this latest outbreak occurred has long been neglected by government officials, so the increased attention has triggered hostile reactions from locals, some of whom suspect hidden motives. Yes, some believe the Ebola outbreak is a hoax, while others are secretly upset that they can’t bury their loved ones. The latter is how patient zero spread this pathogen. Now, we have dozens of those infected with Ebola roaming free after fleeing these facilities (via NBC News):
Doctors operating on the front lines of the fight against Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, already grappling with shortages of basic supplies, are now also having to deal with attacks on their facilities and fleeing patients as the virus spreads rapidly.
At least three such incidents have occurred in the northeastern province of Ituri where the first Ebola cases were reported, including two at the weekend targeting the same hospital that permitted more than two dozen patients to run away.
The attacks recall the widespread violence targeting health facilities during a 2018-2020 outbreak in eastern Congo that killed more than 25 health workers.
Some were perpetrated by civilians who were angry about not being able to bury their loved ones or were convinced that the outbreak was a hoax. The influx of money and manpower into an area that had felt neglected during decades of conflict and humanitarian crisis has spurred local suspicions about the real motives for the sudden spike of interest.
A similar dynamic seems to be playing out now, said Dr. Richard Lokodu, medical director of the Mongbwalu General Referral Hospital, which came under attack first Saturday and again Sunday.