Ebola: Kisangani gets new treatment centre as authorities scale capacity

Congolese authorities on Thursday inaugurated a new ebola treatment centre in the city of Kisangani as they race to ramp up surveillance, diagnostic and treatment capacity.

The facility, manned by medical charity Doctors without Borders, is equipped with 22 beds but with an operational capacity of 50.

“Having an Ebola Treatment Center (ETC) with all the necessary support services, sufficient treatment capacity, and good access to patients will, of course, improve the ability of the medical staff to provide the best possible care to patients and also provide access to an isolation facility to break the chain of transmission at the community level,” said Kate Nolan, the MSF emergency coordinator based in Kisangani

A case of ebola was detected in Kisangani, capital of Tshopo province for the first time during the ongoing outbreak in July.

The virus has now spread to seven provinces, the latest being Sud Ubangi in Congo's northwest.

The outbreak is spreading in some of the most difficult conditions imaginable, fueled by rebel violence, displacement and intense population movements.

A weak healthcare and surveillance system also challenges responders, and insufficient contact tracing and laboratory testing.

Efforts to contain the outbreak have also been complicated by the lack of an approved vaccine or treatment for the rare Bundibugyo virus causing it.