AN OUTBREAK OF a new strain of the deadly Ebola disease in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda has prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare a public health emergency of international concern.

But what does that mean?

The strain of Ebola, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, has no treatment or vaccine and is different from the more common Zaire form of the virus. The new strain has a death rate of between 25% and 40%.

Trish Newport, Doctors Without Borders’ emergency management programme manager, has said:

“The number of cases and deaths we are seeing in such a short timeframe, combined with the spread across several health zones and now across the border, is extremely concerning.”

Invoking the International Health Regulations (IHR), a legal framework adopted by 196 countries, the WHO’s director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus determined that the Ebola disease caused by Bundibugyo virus in the DRC and Uganda “constitutes a public health emergency of international concern” (PHEIC), but does not amount to a pandemic.

What is a PHEIC?

A PHEIC is defined as “an extraordinary event which is determined to constitute a public health risk to other states through the international spread of disease and to potentially require a coordinated international response”.

A PHEIC is characterised as a serious, sudden, unusual or unexpected situation that carries implications for public health beyond the affected state’s borders and may require immediate international action.

Since the establishment of the IHR in 2005, there have been nine PHEIC declarations, including for swine flu, polio, Ebola, Zika and Mpox. 

The WHO declared the outbreak of the Covid virus a PHEIC on 30 January 2020, before eventually recognising it as a pandemic on 11 March the same year.

A health official uses a thermometer to screen people in front of Kibuli Muslim Hospital in Kampala, Uganda. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

As of 16 May, eight laboratory-confirmed cases, 246 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths had been reported in the DRC, according to the WHO.

Two laboratory-confirmed cases with no apparent link to each other have been reported in Kampala, Uganda since 15 May, among two individuals travelling from the DRC, one of whom has died.

“There are significant uncertainties to the true number of infected persons and geographic spread associated with this event at the present time,” the WHO said.
“In addition, there is limited understanding of the epidemiological links with known or suspected cases.”

The UN agency said the event requires international coordination and cooperation to understand the extent of the outbreak, to coordinate surveillance, prevention and response efforts, to scale up and strengthen operations, and ensure ability to implement control measures.

What is the WHO recommending countries do?

For the countries affected so far, the DRC and Uganda, the WHO recommends that they activate their national disaster or emergency mechanisms, which should include enhanced surveillance, contact tracing and laboratory testing.

Countries that share land borders with the DRC and Uganda should urgently enhance their preparedness and increase surveillance at healthcare facilities and at borders.

Nine countries share land borders with the DRC and/or Uganda. They are the Republic of Congo, the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia and Angola.

Rwanda has already partially closed its border with the DRC. 

A woman sanitises her hands in front of Kibuli Muslim Hospital in Kampala, Uganda Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

For all other states, the WHO insists that they should not close borders or place any restrictions on movement and trade.

“Such measures are usually implemented out of fear and have no basis in science,” the agency says.

States should be prepared to facilitate the evacuation and repatriation of citizens who have been exposed to the disease, the WHO advises.

“Entry screening at airports or other ports of entry outside the affected region are not considered needed for passengers returning from areas at risk,” the agency says.

Before the latest outbreak of Ebola, the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs’ advice had already urged citizens not to travel to the DRC for a number of reasons, including unrest, crime and diseases.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and the HSE have been contacted for comment.