Kenyans were thrown into a panic mode after a female patient with Ebola-like symptoms was quarantined at the Kericho County Referral Hospital initiated as a measure of caution and that the symptoms exhibited by the patient may as well be connected to a disease other than Ebola. She had travelled from Busia border to see her husband in Kericho. Her husband and two other friends were quarantined as well.
A statement from the Ministry of Health said the results from the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) have confirmed that the symptoms exhibited by the patient are not consistent with Ebola.
“The result of the tests carried out by KEMRI laboratories on blood samples from the 36-year-old lady who is currently admitted in the isolation unit at Kericho County Referral Hospital have been confirmed negative for EVD and other Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers.
“The ministry of Health wishes to reiterate to the general public and health facilities that we are prepared in terms of Ebola prevention and response measures and, therefore, there is no need for panic,” Health Cabinet Secretary Sicily Kariuki said in the statement.
Health Cabinet Secretary Sicily Kariuki has assured that there is no cause for alarm who had earlier in the day conducted an inspection tour at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to ascertain the facility’s preparedness to screen arriving passengers.
“We wish to state that the patient is free of Ebola and other viral haemorrhagic fever. As a county we remain high alert for any suspected cases,” said Governor Paul Chepkwony in a press a briefing.
The Rapid Surveillance and Response Team has examined the patient at Kericho who had travelled from Malaba town on the Kenya-Uganda Border who is in stable condition and confirms that she DOES NOT meet the case definition for Ebola @SicilyKariuki @KBCChannel1 @PDUDelivery pic.twitter.com/TVAva7s68B
— Ministry of Health (@MOH_Kenya) June 17, 2019
The ministry said that health officials will remain on high alert since reports of an outbreak in neighbouring Uganda last week where two people died of the disease after the World Health Organization (WHO) in Uganda confirmed two samples had tested positive for Ebola. CS said the ministry has deployed 229 staff at various points of entry, including 21 Ebola champions.
