Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on February 1, 2016 - Published by group.bmj.com
News & Reports Disaster medicine
A GROUP of volunteers from the APHA who travelled to Sierra Leone to help in controlling the Ebola epidemic have been presented with the Ebola Medal to recognise their efforts. In October 2014, in response to the growing humanitarian crisis in West Africa, the UK Government called for suitably experienced scientists to help. Nine volunteers from the APHA offered their laboratory skills and, after a week’s training, they were flown out to work as part of a team of scientists and healthcare specialists at two British-built sites in Sierra Leone: the Mateneh Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC), run by the International Medical Corps, and a treatment centre in Port Loko, run by the charity GOAL. Both centres housed diagnostic laboratories set up by Public Health England. One of the APHA volunteers, Anna La Rocca, a virologist, explained how she was involved: ‘When we arrived, our main job was to test patient samples and get accurate results as soon as possible so that people could be treated or released. We also had to quickly test samples from the surrounding community to allow a rapid response to any new outbreak.’ Another volunteer, bacteriologist Roland Ashford, commented: ‘The Mateneh diagnostic laboratory was of a good standard, given the location and the speed
Photograph: APHA
APHA scientists recognised for their work during the Ebola crisis handprint on a survivors’ wall, which in itself was a very moving reminder of the seriousness of the outbreak.’ Chris Hadkiss, chief executive of the APHA, presented some of the volunteers with their medals. He said that it was thanks to the efforts of volunteers, working alongside local healthcare workers, that many areas Moving reminder: handprints on a Ebola survivors’ wall, where patients had now been declared free would mark their recovery by leaving a handprint of Ebola and many lives saved. with which it had to be constructed. It had ‘To volunteer to travel to an Ebolato be staffed for 16 hours a day, every day of infected country, in support of the the week in order to meet the demands for humanitarian work, was an incredibly testing samples from the community.’ selfless act and I commend everyone’s Biochemist, Gareth Williams, added: bravery and dedication,’ he said. ‘The location of the laboratory within the The Ebola Medal has been approved Mateneh ETC meant samples could be by the Queen and is awarded to military submitted directly and the results made and civilian personnel who supported the available within four hours. This was crucial Government’s response to the Ebola crisis. in allowing the medical teams to decide how It has been presented to members of the patients should be managed. armed forces, doctors and nurses from the ‘The laboratory was also used to NHS, scientists and public health specialists establish when convalescing patients were and members of the civil service and nonno longer infectious and could be released governmental organisations. from the treatment centre. These patients would mark their recovery by leaving a doi: 10.1136/vr.i478
January 30, 2016 | Veterinary Record | 107
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on February 1, 2016 - Published by group.bmj.com
APHA scientists recognised for their work during the Ebola crisis Veterinary Record 2016 178: 107
doi: 10.1136/vr.i478 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/178/5/107.1
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Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
News & Reports Disaster medicine
A GROUP of volunteers from the APHA who travelled to Sierra Leone to help in controlling the Ebola epidemic have been presented with the Ebola Medal to recognise their efforts. In October 2014, in response to the growing humanitarian crisis in West Africa, the UK Government called for suitably experienced scientists to help. Nine volunteers from the APHA offered their laboratory skills and, after a week’s training, they were flown out to work as part of a team of scientists and healthcare specialists at two British-built sites in Sierra Leone: the Mateneh Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC), run by the International Medical Corps, and a treatment centre in Port Loko, run by the charity GOAL. Both centres housed diagnostic laboratories set up by Public Health England. One of the APHA volunteers, Anna La Rocca, a virologist, explained how she was involved: ‘When we arrived, our main job was to test patient samples and get accurate results as soon as possible so that people could be treated or released. We also had to quickly test samples from the surrounding community to allow a rapid response to any new outbreak.’ Another volunteer, bacteriologist Roland Ashford, commented: ‘The Mateneh diagnostic laboratory was of a good standard, given the location and the speed
Photograph: APHA
APHA scientists recognised for their work during the Ebola crisis handprint on a survivors’ wall, which in itself was a very moving reminder of the seriousness of the outbreak.’ Chris Hadkiss, chief executive of the APHA, presented some of the volunteers with their medals. He said that it was thanks to the efforts of volunteers, working alongside local healthcare workers, that many areas Moving reminder: handprints on a Ebola survivors’ wall, where patients had now been declared free would mark their recovery by leaving a handprint of Ebola and many lives saved. with which it had to be constructed. It had ‘To volunteer to travel to an Ebolato be staffed for 16 hours a day, every day of infected country, in support of the the week in order to meet the demands for humanitarian work, was an incredibly testing samples from the community.’ selfless act and I commend everyone’s Biochemist, Gareth Williams, added: bravery and dedication,’ he said. ‘The location of the laboratory within the The Ebola Medal has been approved Mateneh ETC meant samples could be by the Queen and is awarded to military submitted directly and the results made and civilian personnel who supported the available within four hours. This was crucial Government’s response to the Ebola crisis. in allowing the medical teams to decide how It has been presented to members of the patients should be managed. armed forces, doctors and nurses from the ‘The laboratory was also used to NHS, scientists and public health specialists establish when convalescing patients were and members of the civil service and nonno longer infectious and could be released governmental organisations. from the treatment centre. These patients would mark their recovery by leaving a doi: 10.1136/vr.i478
January 30, 2016 | Veterinary Record | 107
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on February 1, 2016 - Published by group.bmj.com
APHA scientists recognised for their work during the Ebola crisis Veterinary Record 2016 178: 107
doi: 10.1136/vr.i478 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/178/5/107.1
These include:
Email alerting service
Receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article. Sign up in the box at the top right corner of the online article.
Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
