LAGOS, Nigeria(VOICE OF NAIJA)- The fight against a deadly Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has suffered a setback after frontline health workers in some of the worst-affected areas stopped work over unpaid allowances, inadequate protective equipment, and difficult working conditions.
The industrial action began in Bunia, the capital of Ituri Province, and neighbouring Rwampara, two areas currently carrying a large share of the country’s Ebola burden.
According to the National Institute of Public Health (NIPH), the strike has affected essential response activities, including treatment services, disease monitoring and patient care.
The disruption comes at a critical time as Ebola infections continue to rise across the country.
Reports showed that the outbreak has now infected more than 1,700 people and caused at least 580 deaths, while Bunia and Rwampara alone account for 829 confirmed cases, representing almost half of the total infections recorded nationwide.
Health authorities announced that workers withdrew their services because of unpaid benefits, poor working conditions and shortages of protective equipment needed to safely respond to the virus.
As a result, the NIPH warned that the strike could weaken the general healthcare system, increasing the risk of deaths from other preventable illnesses as routine medical services become harder for communities to access.
The Ebola crisis is unfolding in a healthcare environment already affected by years of armed conflict, displacement, limited funding and reduced international support.
Global humanitarian organization Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, had previously reported that many health workers had abandoned their positions before the outbreak, while several health facilities in affected areas had either closed or suffered damage.
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Meanwhile, Ebola treatment centres are facing growing pressure as patient admissions increase.
Government situation reports showed that facilities recorded more than 100 Ebola admissions on consecutive days this week, nearly twice the average daily number reported in June.
Despite ongoing response measures, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that it is too early to confirm that the outbreak has stabilized.
The virus has also spread to Boga in southern Ituri, while more than 12,400 people identified as contacts of infected patients are being monitored daily across 37 affected health zones.
Although health workers continue surveillance efforts through contact tracing and public awareness campaigns, humanitarian organizations report that the fear of contracting Ebola has caused some residents to avoid hospitals completely.
Therefore, this has affected access to routine healthcare services, including childhood vaccination, maternal care and nutrition support.
As part of the emergency response, UNICEF plans to reach about 900,000 households through community outreach programmes aimed at improving awareness and encouraging people to seek medical care.
Still, frontline workers remain among those most at risk during the outbreak. Official figures showed that at least 96 healthcare workers have contracted Ebola, with 19 deaths recorded.
Some infections occurred after medical workers treated patients whose early symptoms appeared similar to malaria or other common illnesses.
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The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, a rare form of the virus with no approved vaccine or specific treatment.
However, health authorities recently began clinical trials to test possible treatments for infected patients in Ituri Province.
The WHO, working with Congo’s health authorities and international partners, launched studies involving experimental treatments including MBP134, a monoclonal antibody therapy developed by Mapp Biopharmaceutical, and remdesivir, an antiviral drug developed by Gilead Sciences.
The research aims to identify effective therapies for the Bundibugyo strain, which has become a major public health concern due to the scale of the current outbreak.
Beyond the health impact, experts have warned that a wider regional spread could affect economies across Central and East Africa.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) previously estimated that an uncontrolled outbreak could lead to job losses and billions of dollars in economic losses.
The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) also reported that Ebola treatment centres were operating at about 95 percent bed occupancy, while daily monitoring of identified contacts remained below the level considered necessary to effectively stop transmission.
With health workers now off the front lines in key areas, authorities face growing pressure to resolve the dispute quickly while strengthening medical response efforts to prevent the outbreak from spreading further.
