Hospital staff brief the community on the disease's outbreak and remind everyone the basic precautions that also contribute to the national effort to fight Ebola.
On the road in front of the hospital, there has been a noticeable reduction in truck traffic travelling westward or arriving from the west—from Congo or South Sudan. Lacor Hospital is only five hours away from the areas of Congo most severely affected by the outbreak.
The government has deployed the army to strengthen border controls. It is said that, in these regions, travellers are commonly stopped several times by military personnel to have their temperatures checked and to confirm where they have travelled from. Despite all the measures being taken, however, the borders cannot be made completely secure.
During Sunday Mass, hospital doctors provide the community with updates on the outbreak and remind everyone of a few basic precautions. After ten days without a new case—and with only 20 cases recorded in Uganda since the beginning of the outbreak—a newly reported case reset the count of consecutive days without a new infection to zero.
Apart from these measures, life here continues as usual, with caution now part of everyday life. The government appears determined to implement every necessary measure despite its limited resources.
The rainy season began this week. Some people said it would slow things down even further, but now, every day, heavy rain suddenly pours down before brilliant sunshine returns just as quickly. Let us hope the same will soon be true of the outbreak.
Warm regards to everyone,
Dominique
