The Ugandan Ministry of Health has today (11 January) declared the end of the seventh Ebola outbreak which started on 20 September 2022. In total, 142 people were confirmed as having Ebola - eighty-seven people recovered from the disease, while 55 died. The Case Fatality Rate (CFR) among confirmed patients was 39%. These cases were spread over nine districts, the majority of which were in Mubende and Kassanda.
Given that no new confirmed cases have been reported since the 27 November 2022, forty-two days have now passed without any confirmed Ebola patients in the country - twice the incubation period of the virus.
During the outbreak, Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) provided strong support the Ministry of Health to reduce mortality through case management, to prevent the spread of the outbreak through outreach projects and to provide epidemiological expertise in five districts (Mubende, Kassanda, Kampala, Masaka and Jinja).
In total, MSF provided care to 107 confirmed patients and 1,125 suspect patients in two Ebola Treatment Centres (ETC) that the organisation built in Mubende, the initial epicentre of the outbreak. In Kampala, the Ugandan capital, MSF assisted in the treatment of 11 confirmed Ebola patients and 91 suspect patients at the country’s Mulago National Isolation Centre. At the end of the outbreak, 118 of the 142 confirmed cases (83%) of this epidemic were treated in MSF-supported facilities.
In total, our teams constructed six ETCs during the outbreak and donated medical supplies and other equipment such as water and sanitation materials. We also provided training and equipment to 212 health centres and ran health promotion activities in the affected areas.
Following this outbreak, MSF remains committed to building the capacity of the Ugandan emergency response teams to ensure strong preparedness for any future outbreaks and we are currently training health workers at the new ETC training facility in Kampala.