World losing battle against Ebola - Doctors Without Borders
Doctors Without Borders, which has treated more than 1,000 Ebola patients in West Africa since March, is completely overwhelmed by the disease, said Joanne Liu, the organization's president. She called on other countries to contribute civilian and military medical personnel familiar with biological disasters.
"Six months into the worst Ebola epidemic in history, the world is losing the battle to contain it," Liu said at a UN forum on the outbreak. "Ebola treatment centres are reduced to places where people go to die alone, where little more than palliative care is offered."
In Sierra Leone, she said, infectious bodies are rotting in the streets. Liberia had to build a new crematorium instead of new Ebola care centres.
At the UN meeting, WHO Director Margaret Chan thanked countries that have helped but said: "We need more from you. And we also need those countries that have not come on board."
Are enough decision makers listening?
Killer
Nurses at a hard hit hospital's Ebola ward in Freetown, Sierra Leone have reportedly gone on strike.
Authorities have cordoned off entire towns in an effort to halt the virus' spread. Surrounding countries have closed land borders, and airlines have suspended flights to and from the affected countries. Seaports are losing traffic, restricting food imports to the hardest-hit countries.
This has resulted in skyrocketing food prices in some of the markets.
Doctors Without Borders