After the outbreak, the care continues
Buna survived Ebola. Now he’s encouraging other survivors to get checked.
In Bunia, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Ebola response doesn’t end when patients leave the treatment centre. At the Survivors Clinic, teams examine survivors from head to toe, treat complications and monitor their health, so the disease doesn’t return to the community.
“We examine them from head to toe to check for any related conditions,” says Dr Huguette Mbuyi Musdi, of the Ministry of Health. The follow-up has two goals, explains Dr Brys Busanga, WHO’s survivor monitoring focal point: “to prevent the disease from coming back in the community,” and “to care for the health problems survivors have.”
For Buna Ngbadhego Christian, who survived Ebola, the check-up matters. “I was well received,” he says. “I will even ask the others to come for their check-up, because it’s necessary to know your state of health.”
Being ready means protecting people before, during and after an outbreak.
