The Ministry of Health is planning to establish a mobile Ebola treatment centre in Ituri Province in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of efforts to prevent further importation of Ebola cases into Uganda.
Speaking during a meeting with health workers on Friday, Dr. Atek Kajirita, the Deputy Incident Commander at the ministry, revealed that the number of contacts under follow-up has risen sharply to 580 from just over 100 earlier this week.
He warned that Uganda is likely to register more Ebola cases because infected health workers had interacted with many people across multiple health facilities.
The ministry on Friday confirmed two additional Congolese nationals had tested positive for the Sudan Ebola virus outbreak. One was identified as a contact of an already confirmed case, while the other presented with symptoms and was later picked up by the rapid response team.
Apart from three infected health workers and one Ugandan national, all confirmed Ebola cases in Uganda so far are Congolese nationals. Kajirita said many Congolese nationals continue crossing into Uganda seeking treatment, including reports of some entering through the Tanzania border.
He said Uganda and the DRC are now planning a joint cross-border mission in Ituri Province involving rapid testing and treatment services to contain the outbreak at the source.
According to figures released by the DRC government on Thursday, Ituri Province has so far registered 121 confirmed Ebola cases and 17 deaths, with the outbreak spreading from three to eighteen health zones.
Despite authorities insisting that Uganda’s situation remains under control, Dr. Richard Kabanda, the Commissioner for Health Promotion, urged the public to remain vigilant and report early symptoms such as fever, eye redness, skin rash, and joint pain instead of waiting for advanced signs like bleeding.
Dr. Charles Olaro, the Director General of Health Services, warned that some Ebola patients are initially being misdiagnosed with illnesses such as peptic ulcers because of abdominal pain associated with the disease.
He urged health workers to take detailed travel histories from patients to avoid missing suspected cases. Meanwhile, Kajirita clarified that members of the public are wrongly being encouraged to wear face masks as a preventive measure against Ebola, noting that the virus is not spread through respiratory transmission. He instead emphasized regular handwashing and sanitizing as key preventive measures.
