The Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has surpassed 2,000 confirmed cases, reaching 2,011 infections and 754 deaths, as healthcare workers at the center of the crisis walked off the job Wednesday over unpaid wages and inadequate working conditions.
Workers at Bunia General Hospital in the northeastern Ituri province began their strike Wednesday morning, physically blocking the entrance to the hospital. They said they have received no compensation for their work since the outbreak began, despite operating under extremely difficult conditions.
The protests in Bunia follow earlier strikes in the same region. Dozens of healthcare workers, including epidemiologists and grave diggers at Rwampara General Hospital, walked off their jobs Monday with the same complaint: they had not been paid for months.
Medical charity Doctors Without Borders said the current outbreak is the third largest and fastest growing Ebola outbreak on record. The outbreak started May 15 and has been caused by the Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is currently no vaccine or approved treatment.
The World Health Organization warned Tuesday that the actual death toll could be two to four times higher than officially recorded numbers. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced Tuesday that the first clinical trial testing whether an antiviral drug can prevent infection in those exposed to the Bundibugyo virus had launched. "If effective among high-risk contacts after exposure, this could mark a major step forward in Ebola BVD prevention," Tedros wrote on social media.
The combination of a growing case count, a striking health workforce, and no available vaccine or treatment has placed the response under severe strain, according to Al Jazeera.
