Frontline health workers train in readiness to fight Ebola
More than 200 Ghanaian frontline health professionals yesterday started a three-day training programme in Accra as part of the country’s preparations towards the prevention, early detection and proper management of the Ebola Virus Disease should it spread into the country.
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The clinicians, nurses, disease control officers, orderlies, pharmacists, health promotion officers, counsellors and laboratory technicians, who are undergoing the training would be equipped with the skills for infection prevention and control, prompt and effective case management, outbreak response and safe burials.
It is being organised by the Ministry of Health and the Ghana Health Service in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO), under the sponsorship of the Norwegian Government for the health personnel, drawn from the Greater Accra Region.
The training is expected to be replicated in the other regions.
Addressing the opening session of the programme, the Minister of Health, Dr Kwaku Agyemang-Mensah, said although the country seemed to be winning the fight against infectious diseases, those caused by viruses such as Ebola, continued to be a formidable threat.
He said the current outbreak in some West African countries had been described by the WHO as the most challenging outbreak internationally, based on the rate at which the disease had spread in the Sub-Region.
“Ghana is an international transport hub and has not registered any case of Ebola to date. It therefore falls into the category of countries that will implement activities towards achieving the third objective of Ebola response roadmap, which is to strengthen preparedness to rapidly detect and contain an outbreak,” he added.
WHO representative
The Country Representative of the WHO, Dr Magada Robal, said Ghana was in a better position to contain an Ebola outbreak in the unlikely event of its spread into the country because it had already put in place surveillance and management systems.
She identified the systems to include the provision of two temperature walk-in scanners at the Kotoka International Airport, the provision of hand-held temperature scanners at various approved entry points, hospitals and tertiary institutions, the establishment of Ebola centers as well as holding areas, the training of health personnel nationwide and public education.
For her part, the Norwegian Ambassador to Ghana, Ms Hege Hertzberg, said the spread of Ebola could be contained because it had been done in other countries, including Senegal and Nigeria.
Writer’s email doreen.andoh@graphic.com.gh