Tunkia Chiefdom remains safe from Ebola, though the disease has spread into Kono District directly to the north of Kenema, having migrated along the main road from Makeni. Koidu town is reportedly very bad, with a large number of cases. One lorrie driver from Kono arrived in Kenema three days ago with Ebola symptoms and is now confined to hospital, but no other cases have been reported anywhere in Kenema District for over a month. The hardest-hit areas in the west and north -- Freetown, Port Loko, Makeni -- are still struggling. Implementing changes in burial practices seems to be the biggest challenge in these areas -- the populace is very attached to the ritual of washing the body and other touching that spreads the virus. It seems that only repeatedly observing others die from touching a victim's body will be enough to finally produce a cultural shift. And in the meantime, many are being lost.
Gbeworbu's outreach teams are ready for another round of visits to the 29 surrounding villages to remind the people of what they have already learned, encourage them to remain vigilant, add some new information, including avoiding unwashed fruits that may have been touched by wild animals, and discussing the need to accept survivors of Ebola back into society. Stigmatization is a big problem at present in some areas, particularly for orphans. Though the villages of Tunkia Chiefdom have not produced their own survivors, people will eventually come, or at least pass through, from other parts of the country when the epidemic is over, and it will be important for them to be treated with dignity and acceptance. And, the greater the general atmosphere of acceptance, the more likely that attitude will be passed on to those elsewhere.
S.C.
Gbeworbu's outreach teams are ready for another round of visits to the 29 surrounding villages to remind the people of what they have already learned, encourage them to remain vigilant, add some new information, including avoiding unwashed fruits that may have been touched by wild animals, and discussing the need to accept survivors of Ebola back into society. Stigmatization is a big problem at present in some areas, particularly for orphans. Though the villages of Tunkia Chiefdom have not produced their own survivors, people will eventually come, or at least pass through, from other parts of the country when the epidemic is over, and it will be important for them to be treated with dignity and acceptance. And, the greater the general atmosphere of acceptance, the more likely that attitude will be passed on to those elsewhere.
S.C.