Jubilation as Congo discharges last Ebola patient

The last Ebola patient being treated in the Democratic Republic of Congo went home from a treatment centre on Tuesday, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), a significant step in the countdown to declaring an end to the world’s second-deadliest outbreak of the disease.

The woman was released from the centre in Beni Town, one of the hotspots of the recent outbreak, which began August 2018, the agency said in a statement.

On Tuesday, WHO Africa region tweeted a video of healthcare workers singing and dancing with the patient as many gathered at the centre to celebrate her release from the hospital.

It added that 46 people who had come in contact with the patient are still being monitored for Ebola symptoms.

While praising the “tireless efforts” of agencies in the fight to tackle the outbreak, WHO regional director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, called for caution and vigilance.“It is not yet the end of Ebola in the DR Congo. We must stay vigilant in the coming weeks and beyond,” Dr Moeti said in the statement.

The WHO estimates that 2,226 people were killed in the current outbreak in Congo — its tenth since the virus was discovered in 1976.