A specialized Ebola training facility established by Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Kenya is giving health workers a vital opportunity to prepare for one of the most volatile and complex emergencies they will ever face.
The ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is currently the fastest-growing on record, according to African health officials, having claimed at least 600 lives since it was declared in mid-May. The containment effort is severely challenged by widespread poverty and active armed groups in the region.
Furthermore, deep-seated misinformation about the disease has prompted some local residents to reject medical treatment, ignore safety measures, and even launch attacks against emergency responders.
Front-line responders face significant danger; health workers make up 112 of the 1,759 confirmed cases in the DRC, and 35 have lost their lives.
To prepare personnel for this treacherous environment, the global charity has constructed a simulation center on the outskirts of Nairobi. Outfitted with patient beds, medical mannequins, a mock laboratory, and hazardous material suits, the facility trains doctors, nurses, and clinicians slated for deployment in the DRC or in neighboring high-risk countries.
“Often, you come from a hospital and a university, you have knowledge and you think you can handle it,” noted trainee Cisse Papa Ndiaga, a 43-year-old MSF community health worker from Senegal who will soon deploy to the DRC. “But once you’re in PPE (personal protective equipment), it’s a different story,” he said.
The curriculum places a heavy emphasis on community engagement. Trainees learn how to interact with local populations who are often terrified by the sudden appearance of health workers in full protective gear. They are also trained in managing safe, dignified funerals and reducing the social stigma that frequently targets recovered patients.
“We need to put more attention on the acceptance of these centres in the communities, it’s something so bizarre for a community to see people dress the way that we’re dressed,” explained Diana Corben, a 37-year-old doctor working with MSF’s mission in the Central African Republic.
“One of the key things is to be able to get the communities to engage, to understand. But also to make sure that we have empathy and we… take the time to sensitise them,” she added.
Corben emphasized that the training is also about discovering personal psychological and physical limits.
“We need to be very much aware of how much we can tolerate… what we’re going to be put through,” she remarked. “This is a simulation… the reality is going to be that much more intense.”
The facility launched its operations in mid-June and is expected to run through August and potentially beyond, instructing roughly 100 people every month.
While the vast majority of participants so far have been MSF personnel, the center plans to extend its training to Kenyan Ministry of Health officials and staff from various other NGOs.
Following the rigorous simulation, Ndiaga expressed a cautious sense of readiness regarding his upcoming mission.
“I’m not sure I’m ready… but I’m less scared,” he said.
