Assured: It’s not Ebola - Minister

THERE is no Ebola virus disease in Zambia and the person admitted to Levy Mwanawasa General hospital is suffering from septicemia, Health minister Chitalu Chilufya has said. And Dr Chitalu Chilufya said tests that were conducted on the patient did not confirm the symptoms of Ebola. Meanwhile, Dr Chilufya said the patient who was admitted at Levy Mwanawasa Hospital had severe vomiting and bleeding, but tests conducted on him at University Teaching Hospital( UTH) did not confirm the suspected Ebola. Speaking during a media briefing in Lusaka yesterday, Dr Chilufya said the admission of the patient from Serenje showed the alertness and preparedness Zambia had put in place to detect any form of disease in the country. He explained that the surveillance has been heighten in all border areas for any eventuality. "Seven rapid response teams have been trained in Luapula and been dispatched to carry out the work they are trained for. The disease intelligence wing under the Ministry of Health was put in place to rule out the possibility of any Ebola outbreak in Zambia", said Dr Chilufya. Dr Chilufya also disclosed that since the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) about 122 cumulative cases have been recorded in that country. He said out of these, 91 had been confirmed and 21 were probable while 82 have died. This took place in North Kivu and Ituli province of the DRC.