INTERESTING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
In Conversation: David Nabarro, The Man On The Front Line of the Ebola Crisis.
The world is at a critical juncture in its response to the worst Ebola outbreak in history, currently causing unprecedented death and upending communities and economies in West Africa. Countries and organizations are ramping up their commitments to help bring the crisis under control, but it has become clear that the situation will continue to worsen until a fully orchestrated response is in place. Last month the United Nations Secretary-General appointed Dr. David Nabarro as Senior United Nations System Coordinator for Ebola Virus Disease. I asked Dr. Nabarro to provide his perspective on a number of questions that are on the top of my mind.

As UN Special Envoy for Malaria, I am especially concerned about the negative consequences of Ebola for other diseases that present with similar symptoms, like malaria. What can be done to ensure that those who are sick with other illnesses still get the treatment they need?
This is a huge risk. The high incidence of Ebola Virus Disease has the potential to impact many more peoples’ health besides those who are actually infected with the virus. There will be an increase in levels of illness and fatality associated with many conditions, not just Ebola. One way of dealing with malaria, if WHO and the countries agree, is to treat all fevers as though they are malaria. Once that is done malaria can no longer “mask” Ebola. This would be in conjunction with widespread distribution of long-lasting insecticide-treated mosquito nets. This temporary measure would be discontinued when the transmission of Ebola Virus Disease is stopped: it can be effective, especially as the malaria season within the three countries is imminent.

Addressing the Ebola outbreak means addressing the fragile state of many African health systems. How can our response now help to strengthen those systems and prevent again future devastations from Ebola and other diseases?

The first order of business is the systematic and orderly control of this outbreak. This will require training of many health workers and first responders at different levels and a rigorous system for ensuring infection prevention and control. This capacity can be the legacy of the outbreak so that the future response can be both quicker and more effective. The capacity will lead to the rapid upgrading of health systems through training, medicine distribution, logistics and case management.

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