Press release
October 21, 2014 (SSNA) — The threat posed by Ebola calls for immediate and extraordinary measures from the Government of South Sudan to thwart additional catastrophes befalling our country. We at Alliance for South Sudanese in Diaspora (ASSD) believes that our homeland is at risk and the sure way to fight this deadly virus, which ransacked the West African countries is by being proactive.
Given the poor infrastructures in the country, Alliance for South Sudanese in the Diaspora wishes to raise the following concerns upon the Government of South Sudan to as of immediate:
1. Put together with urgency 20 teams, termed “Rapid response team”, this team should consist of 20 personals each. The components of these team members should consist of a Doctor/Trained provider, nurses, hazard material handlers, and handlers of a diseased bodies, these should be in charge of burial not the family and relatives. Dead bodies should not be transported for burial at distant location than the city or village where the patient died.
2. Immediate allocations of a piece of land away from populated areas, near Juba and other major cities for quarantine all those infected with Ebola.
3. Set up Medical tents in such places for the treatment of those infected. These patients must never be treat at Juba Hospital.
4. Set up piece of land where clothes and linens that came in contact with the Ebola patient can be burned!
5. Establish additional quarters for the health care providers who care for Ebola patients to live and should not return to family and populated areas after exposures and treating Ebola patients and be quarantine at least 3 weeks.
6. Police forces that will ward and shield off any house or properties where someone fell ill, vomited, had diarrhea until it is decontaminated, such should not be inhabited for at least 3 weeks thus get enough decontaminating materials.
7. Set up a place where those exposed being monitored should be kept until they are symptoms free for 3 week.
8. The government should with urgency, placed orders and purchase protective gears healthcare providers in particular but all the members of the “Ebola Rapid response teams” can be trained to use, in addition buy disinfectant agents/chemicals. Orders also should be placed for “None touch” thermometers for temperature monitoring among healthcare workers, those suspected and new arrivals at the Juba Airport.
9. Develop a standard questioner if not already in place to include,
10. With much pain, we call upon the government to ban travel to and from the Ebola region for anyone to include national and foreigners. It will be a mistake to concentrate only on Africans, indeed if anything, the disease could be brought in by healthcare workers caring for Ebola patients in West Africa most who are European or American,
Whose coming directly from West Africa to our country should be regulated at this junctions else they could serve as portal of the disease to our country.
This last recommendation may seems exaggerations, but it is important to remember the most advanced country in the world, the USA with all her human capabilities, as well as her thousands of miles from West Africa, with seas standing between them, now have two cases of Ebola contracted in their soil after it was imported, escaping their rigorous screening science based methods. Therefore there is not sure screening method other than closing entry and travel to the affected regions! We in South Sudan cannot afford such a brake out for our capabilities are Zero! In our case, Prevention is not better than cure but it is the cure in itself!
About ASSD: ASSD is an umbrella organization for South Sudanese organizations and individuals advocating for peace, freedom, democracy, human rights, good governance and development in South Sudan