Vaccines distributed to high-risk individuals, including family members and health workers, following confirmed outbreak.
The World Health Organization (WHO) announced on Wednesday that vaccination efforts have commenced in eastern Congo after the death of a toddler from Ebola last week. The U.N. health agency confirmed the outbreak, which began on October 8, and has started vaccinating people at high risk of exposure, including the child’s family members and healthcare workers, using a Merck-made vaccine.
Approximately 1,000 doses of the vaccine have arrived in Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, with an additional 200 doses sent to Beni, a nearby city where the first case was confirmed. This outbreak follows a devastating epidemic that started in 2018, which claimed over 2,200 lives in the conflict-prone region.
In response to previous misconduct, including sexual abuse by some WHO responders during the 2018 epidemic, the organization has dispatched an expert on preventing sexual abuse and exploitation as part of its response efforts this month.
