Ebola Virus Outbreak - Training
GENEVA, Switzerland, October 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The IFRC Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC) in Kenema, Sierra Leone, opened its doors on 14 September and started accepting patients. This is an unprecedented milestone for Red Cross Red Crescent's response. A lot of learning, planning and training has been needed to ensure the safety of our staff, and that it is comfortable and secure for the patients.
The IFRC Health Department is giving a series of pre-deployment courses for its experts who will be sent to be part of the Ebola operation in West Africa. The objective of the course is to ensure that the delegates have sufficient knowledge about the disease and its transmission routes so that they are able work safely and efficiently in a well-designed Ebola Treatment Centre. This two-day Ebola Virus Disease training combines theory, practice and the opportunity to meet and discuss with delegates who have recently returned from the West Africa Ebola outbreak operation. The course is relevant for nurses, doctors, water and sanitation specialists, paramedics and other staff who will be working in the ETC.
The second Ebola training course is taking place at the IFRC Secretariat this week on Monday, 6 October to Tuesday 7 September.
The IFRC would like to invite interested media to this training. You will be able to meet the staff who have recently returning from the Ebola response and newly trained delegates who will be going soon. You will also be able to witness some of the technical training activities which will be organized during these 2 days.
After six months since the start of the Ebola epidemic, with over 6,800 confirmed cases and more than 3,100 deaths in Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria, there is still no sign of an end to the outbreak.
Numerous of our Red Cross Red Crescent staff and volunteers are working in perhaps some of the most difficult areas of intervention - dead body management, contact tracing and health promotion in the communities.