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Jamaica's health authorities have again been placed on alert for the Ebola virus, with the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring last week that the current outbreak in The Democratic Republic of Congo constituted a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Minister of Health Dr. Christopher Tufton told RJR News Sunday night that, following the declaration, officials of his Ministry met to assess systems required to strengthen surveillance and Jamaica's preparedness to cope with the potential spread of the Ebola virus.
There had been “extensive discussions” he said, arising from which “appropriate protocols” are being put in place.
He noted the country had also been placed on Ebola alert a few years ago, as a consequence of which “there are certain things that were put in place during that time for that possibility - isolation areas, we have a number of those in a few of our institutions, as well as the protocols to inspect, detect, and to treat…”
The Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) has also urged Jamaica and other regional countries to increase surveillance for Ebola at ports of entry.
The World Health Organization on Wednesday made the emergency declaration for the year-old outbreak, a rare move that usually leads to more global attention and aid.
More than 1,600 people have died in what has become the second-worst Ebola outbreak in history.
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