Three Ebola patients flee quarantine in Congo, sparking fears the disease may spread
Two of the patients who fled an isolation ward with the help of family members have died
Health officials in Congo are anxious to contain the country’s deadly Ebola outbreak – which has already spread to an urban area – before the situation gets any worse. But controlling the virus may have just got tougher.
On Wednesday, the Medecins Sans Frontieres mission in the Congolese city of Mbandaka announced that three Ebola patients there had left a hospital isolation ward and re-entered the general population.
One patient left Sunday, shortly before they had been due to be discharged. The patient was tracked down and is still alive, according to the aid group.
Two others left overnight Monday with the help of family members; one of the patients died outside quarantine and another was brought back to the hospital and died there.
It is normal for people to want the loved ones to be at home during what could be the last moments of life
“In all three cases, every effort was made by staff at the hospital to convince the patients – and their families – not to leave and to continue their treatment,” said Brienne Prusak, a press officer for MSF, as Medecins Sans Frontieres is frequently known, in a statement.