NAIROBI, Kenya Oct 7 – Questions over how an imported case of Bundibugyo Ebola virus disease entered Kenya have intensified after the patient died while receiving treatment at Nairobi Hospital, with doctors now demanding urgent measures to prevent further transmission.
The Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU) said the confirmed case and subsequent death should serve as a warning that Kenya’s preparedness for high-consequence infectious diseases cannot be left to chance.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, KMPDU said it had learnt with concern of the confirmed case and expressed condolences to the patient’s family and loved ones.
The union also raised concern over the safety of healthcare workers who attended to the patient and those who may have been exposed at Nairobi Hospital or other points of care.
“All healthcare workers who may have come into contact with the patient, whether at Nairobi Hospital or other points of care, must receive immediate medical monitoring, psychological support and appropriate follow-up,” KMPDU said.
The union called for specialised personal protective equipment (PPE), strict infection prevention measures and adequate training for healthcare workers dealing with suspected Ebola cases.
The doctors’ union further demanded that contact tracing be conducted rigorously, promptly and transparently, warning that gaps in information could fuel misinformation and complicate efforts to contain the disease.
“Healthcare workers and the public need clear, accurate and regular information on the response, without creating unnecessary panic or leaving room for misinformation,” KMPDU said.
The union also wants the government to confirm that isolation and high-consequence infectious disease treatment units in regional referral facilities are operational, properly equipped and staffed by trained personnel.
KMPDU warned that preparedness should not remain confined to policy documents, saying the country must ensure hospitals are ready before additional suspected or confirmed cases emerge.
The union further called for healthcare workers and their representatives to be included in national and county emergency response structures.
“Those working directly with patients understand the realities, gaps and risks within our health system,” the union said, adding that their expertise should inform decisions on containment, infection prevention and protection of healthcare workers.
KMPDU also demanded that counties provide medical cover for healthcare workers, arguing that delayed employer remittances should not result in health workers being locked out of services under the Social Health Authority (SHA).
The union said it would continue monitoring the situation and engaging the relevant authorities to ensure the necessary safeguards are implemented.
The confirmation of the imported Ebola case has triggered contact tracing and other response measures as health authorities work to establish the patient’s movements and identify people who may have been exposed.
KMPDU said the government’s response must be characterised by urgency, transparency and accountability.
“When we protect healthcare workers, we protect the entire country,” the union said.
The patient was a Kenyan citizen who had lived in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for seven years and had fallen ill about a month before returning to Kenya.
According to Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, he was treated at several hospitals in the DRC before travelling by road to Kampala, Uganda, and later boarding Jambojet flight JM8523 to Nairobi on Saturday, October 3.
He arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at about 1.10pm and underwent routine screening at the Port Health and immigration desks.
Duale said the patient was then taken directly from JKIA to Nairobi Hospital by a relative and a friend. He presented with fever, chills, severe fatigue and weakness, muscle pain, painful swallowing, a sore throat and bleeding under the skin at injection sites.
Doctors suspected a viral haemorrhagic fever, and samples later tested positive for Bundibugyo Ebola at both the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the Kenya Medical Research Institute.
