China CDC experts join intl Ebola fight

China's National Disease Control and Prevention Administration said it has sent two public health experts to Uganda to join a newly established international coordination platform supporting the response to the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

The platform, jointly established by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization Regional Office for Africa, is based at the Infectious Diseases Institute at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda. Known as the Joint Africa CDC-WHO AFRO Continental Incident Management Support Team, the platform became fully operational on June 29.

The two experts, both from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, had participated in the Ebola response in Sierra Leone a decade ago. Invited by the platform's organizers, they departed from Beijing for Uganda around midnight on Wednesday.

China has already dispatched two teams of medical specialists to support the Ebola response in the DRC, with a total of 10 experts specializing in epidemiology, laboratory testing and clinical treatment.

As of Saturday, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had reported 1,926 confirmed Ebola cases, including 702 deaths. The outbreak was declared on May 15 and has since spread to two additional areas, affecting five regions.

Uganda had reported 20 confirmed cases and one related death as of Monday, according to the latest data.

"The platform is structured around 14 technical pillars, including coordination and governance, surveillance, laboratory work, community engagement, infection prevention and control, case management, logistics and supplies, among others," said An Zhijie, a public health expert from the China CDC and one of the two mission members.

An will serve in the coordination and governance pillar, where he will track the epidemiological situation, analyze transmission risks and the effectiveness of control measures across different regions, assess the risk of cross-border transmission and facilitate information sharing.

"It is important for us to integrate China's experience in disease control with the local context, share our hands-on lessons learned from previous outbreaks with international partners during routine technical discussions, and help Ebola-affected countries adopt suitable, tailored measures," he said.

Wang Huanyu, the other mission member and head of the Arbovirus Department at the China CDC's National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention, will work in the laboratory pillar.

"I will support the expansion of the local testing network, as the Africa CDC is planning to increase both the number of testing sites and testing capacity in the coming months," Wang said.

He said he will also focus on improving sample transportation, as long transit times between collection sites and laboratories are delaying diagnoses and patient admissions, contributing to the high case fatality rate.

In addition, he will analyze each testing site's workload and positivity rate to help guide supply chain management and resource allocation, Wang said.

Reflecting on his experience fighting Ebola in Sierra Leone a decade ago, An said it was uncommon at the time to see Chinese experts participating in outbreak response efforts in Africa.

"Now, we have been invited to join this platform to deal with public health emergencies in Africa, which is a testament to the trust placed in our capabilities," he said.

wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn