Ten individuals who came into contact with a man who died from Ebola in Kenya have been placed under quarantine measures. Health officials are currently working to trace 57 other contacts of the Kenyan patient.
The patient travelled to Nairobi, dying in a hospital on Monday, having originated from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Jean Kaseya stated that the patient passed through multiple cities within the Democratic Republic of Congo, travelled to Uganda, and subsequently flew to Kenya without his illness being detected.
The Ebola virus transmits through contact with infected bodily fluids, such as vomit or blood. The current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo commenced in May.
Patrick Amoth suggested the patient might have passed screening after using medications that obscured his symptoms. The patient was buried on Tuesday, following established health safety guidelines.
Dr Dennis Miskellah noted that the Ebola case did not surprise him or most health workers. Dr Dennis Miskellah witnessed "lapses" at various border points, including those with neighbouring Uganda and Tanzania, and at Kenya's main airport.
President William Ruto confirmed that surveillance and rapid response teams are currently deployed on the ground. Kenya has screened over 650,000 travellers and tested 267 samples.
Facilities in four primary hospitals have been designated for managing Ebola patients. A US proposal to set up an Ebola treatment facility at a military base in Nanyuki was stopped by the courts.
Aden Duale, the Health Minister, stated the government considered converting the facility into the region's first infectious disease hospital. More than 4,000 people have died from Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo this year.
Uganda reported an Ebola outbreak shortly after the Democratic Republic of Congo declared one in May. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Uganda free of Ebola in August.
Uganda's health ministry emphasized that the country remained free of Ebola. The Kenyan Ebola patient transited through Uganda for less than 24 hours.
Kaseya, Africa CDC chief, stated that Kenya was "well prepared" to receive the case. Kaseya also stated that there was no quick testing available at border points and that taking temperatures was unreliable.
Dr Miskellah expressed concern that governments depend on the "honesty and full co-operation of the travellers to self-declare, to say the truth" about their health.
