The Minister of Health, Dr Kwaku Agyemang Mensah, has given an assurance that the country�s Ebola surveillance system is working around the clock, making it difficult for any case, whether suspected or otherwise, to slip through.
Dr Mensah said although the country was fairly well prepared, he was still embodying the experiences from other countries and constantly reviewing and updating his strategies.
The minister made this known when he briefed Parliament yesterday on Ghana�s preparedness, as well as control measures that had been put in place, to prevent the outbreak and control of the deadly disease in the country.
Giving the background to the outbreak of the disease, Dr Mensah said the World Health organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak of the Ebola virus disease (EvD) in West Africa as a Public Health Emergency of international concern on August 8, this year.
He said this outbreak was the first of a kind that had gone beyond the borders of one country with large numbers of cases from rural and urban areas.
The minister said since the WHO was notified of the outbreak, a total of 13,042 cases had been confirmed in six countries as of November 2, 2014.
Affected countries
The affected countries are Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Spain and the United States of America. Nigeria and Senegal are two previously affected countries.
Dr Mensah said there had also been 4,960 reported deaths and that the outbreaks in Senegal and Nigeria were declared over on October 17 and 19 this year respectively, adding that at the country level, the weekly incidence appeared to be stable in Guinea.
However, in Sierra Leone, the weekly incidence continues to rise, while in Liberia it appears to be declining.
According to the minister, in Ghana, as of November 13, 118 suspected cases had been reported and tests at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) had proven all negative and, therefore, no confirmed case of Ebola as of now had occurred in the country.
�We have had Ghanaian fishermen from Sierra Leone and Liberia returning to towns like Komenda. There was also the case of Ghanaian workers from Sierra Leone through Paga. The refugee camp at Buduburam is also noted for the constant interaction between Liberians in Ghana and their relatives back in Liberia. In all of these instances these travellers have been identified and monitored,� he said.
Health teams
He said to improve the capacity for case management, a group of Ghanaian health professionals, made up of epidemiologists, infectious disease experts, clinicians, communication experts and nurses had undergone training in Congo Brazzaville and Brussels to serve as master trainers.
Dr Mensah said members of the emergency operations centre and the case management team of Nigeria were in the country with officials of the Centres for Disease Control of the US to share with their Ghanaian counterparts what they did to successfully contain the case of the disease that was introduced into Nigeria.
Regional case management
He said regional case management and contact tracing teams had been formed and were being trained with those in the Greater Accra, Ashanti, Northern, Upper East and Upper West teams trained and that selected personnel of the ambulance service had also been trained.
With infrastructure, he said the Tema treatment centre had been completed whilst the centres in Tamale and Kumasi are in the process of being constructed. Kumasi as of now has a facility that can be used for treating four cases at a time.
Dr Mensah said incentive package for health workers who would be at the forefront was being finalised, adding that the government together with some private companies, the WHO and development partners had provided over 10,000 personal protective equipment, non-contact infrared thermometers and other materials for case management, with UNICEF pledging additional 25,000 pieces of protective equipment.
Number crunch
118 suspected cases of Ebola virus disease have been reported in Ghana so far but tests have proved all negative
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