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British Doctor Infected with Ebola Returns to UK for Treatment
· Confirmed
In Short: A British doctor who tested positive for Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been flown back to the UK for specialized treatment at the Royal Free Hospital in north London.
A British doctor who tested positive for Ebola while working in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been flown back to the UK for specialized treatment at the Royal Free Hospital in north London. The unnamed doctor was transported to RAF Northolt before being taken to the hospital by ambulance.
The Royal Free Hospital has a high-level isolation unit equipped with specialist isolation systems and staffed by highly trained infectious disease teams. The hospital successfully treated three health workers who had been evacuated after the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014 and 2015.
The doctor was working on an Ebola outbreak in the DRC, which has led to more than 5,100 deaths, according to figures published on the UN website. Ebola is a highly contagious, severe, and often fatal illness spread through direct contact with body fluids such as blood or vomit from infected people or dead bodies.
The doctor is being treated in a 'highly specialized' isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital, the Department of Health and Social Care said. The hospital's isolation unit is run by a dedicated team of doctors, nurses, and laboratory staff.
The fatality rate for Ebola is high, with past outbreaks causing death in 25 percent to 90 percent of infected people. However, Dr. Bindra noted that the virus has not become more transmissible and the threat to the UK has not increased.
What this adds
The doctor's return to the UK underscores the ongoing challenges of managing infectious diseases in remote and resource-limited settings.
The hospital's previous experience with treating Ebola patients in 2014 and 2015 has prepared them to handle this latest case.
What's confirmed
- The infected doctor was brought to the UK on a medical evacuation flight as part of a joint effort by the UK and DR Congo governments and their international health partners, the Department of Health (DoH) said.
- The male doctor, who has not been identified, will undergo specialist treatment in an isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital, the Department of Health and Social Care has said.
- Its specialist team have previously treated adult patients with Lassa fever, Ebola and Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever.
- The doctor is being cared for in an isolation unit at the Royal Free Hospital, according to the Government department.
- He was thought to be working on an Ebola outbreak in DRC, central Africa, which figures published on the UN website show has led to more than 5,100 deaths.
- Ebola has a high fatality rate, with past outbreaks causing death in 25%-90% of infected people.
What's still developing
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- What is Ebola and why is stopping the latest outbreak so difficult?
- It is the first case involving a British national contracting Ebola in the current outbreak.
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