Ebola : Sierra Leone UN Minister, New Jerseyans lobby CDC and US Health officials

Representatives of the United States Center For Disease Control ( CDC ) and the U.S. Department of Health yesterday held a crucial meeting with some concerned citizens of Sierra Leone and Liberia during which they assured West African citizens that their agencies will do whatever it takes to help their countries overcome the Ebola outbreak . The St. Peter’s University Medical Center in Somerset, New Jersey, hosted the meeting. (Photo: The Important Ebola Meeting At The St Peter’s University Medical Center Yesterday)

During the meeting, Sierra Leone’s Minister Plenipotentiary to the UN, Mr. Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu, gave details of steps that the Government of Sierra Leone had undertaken to combat the Ebola outbreak , including the setting up of the Emergency Operations Committee ( EOC ) , the declaration of a state of health emergency, the quarantining of communities, the purchase of 20 ambulances (16 of which had already arrived ), mobile biomedic labs and the 3-day lockdown to start on September 19. He made a desperate appeal to the CDC, Department of Health and the St. Peter’s Hospital to help his country with medical supplies , including drugs and protective gears,and logistics for health -care personnel and the burial crew involved in the Ebola fight . “I cannot stress enough the dire need for these supplies” , the Minister said. “We take these materials for granted in the U.S, but these supplies like gloves, goggles , masks, gowns, chlorine, bleach, hand sanitizers and protective gears are the difference between the destruction and survival of our country “.

Messrs Pavi Jalloh, Hadi Gabisi and Shamsu Deen-Cole of Sierra Leone and Mr. Joseph Tolbert of Liberia , re-echoed the appeal.

Mr. Pavi Jalloh said that just last year international institutions listed Sierra Leone as the fastest growing economy in the continent with a 14% growth rate , and “We want to make sure that Ebola does not reverse the gains we have made over the years democraticaaly and economically. Therefore, we need immediate international support to stop the spread of Ebola in the region”.

Yesterday’s meeting was the outcome of appeals for help towards the Ebola outbreak made to the St. Peter’s and the Robertwood Johnson University Hospitals by Sierra Leonean Community leader and activist , Mr. Pavi Jalloh. The St. Peter’s Hospital, in their response, organized the meeting , inviting the Sierra Leonean and Liberian officials to discuss modalities about how West African countries plagued by Ebola could get much-needed assistance.

On the Sierra Leone side, the meeting was attended by Minister Plenipotentiary Leeroy Wilfred Kabs-Kanu, Mr. Pavi Jalloh , who is the President of the New Jersey Chapter of the ruling All People’s Congress ( APC ), Mr. Hadi Gabisi, the Deputy Chairman of the umbrella organization the Sierra Leone Community of New Jersey ( SLCNJ ) and Community Leader, Mr. Shamsu Deen-Cole. The Liberian lobby was represented by Mr. Joseph Z. Tolbert and Gwen Delbridge.

The CDC was represented by Dr. Prathit Kulkarni, MD . Representatives of the U.S. Department of Health included Ms. Carolyn Daniels of the Office of Minority and Multicultural Health ; and Ms. Suzanne Miro, community health expert for the State of New Jersey . The meeting was moderated by Rev. Tabiri M. Chukhunta, the Director of Community Outreach of the St. Peter’s Hospital. Mr. Phil Hartman, the Director of Public Relations of the hospital was also present.

The discussions centred not only around the provision of medical supplies and logistics direly needed in West Africa to fight Ebola but also what could be done to West Africans in New Jersey to sensitize them , understand how the outbreak affects them and how to protect them , especially given the incidence of relatives and friends coming to visit from the Ebola affected countries.

Mrs. Daniels emphasized that the Commissioner of the Department of Health was very concerned about people in the community and how the outbreak affects them. She said that she was at the meeting on behalf of the Department of Health to find out what the Sierra Leoneans and Liberians needed.

She provided a huge stack of sensitization brochures prepared by the Department of Health for distribution in the community. The brochures are designed to help residents here avoid infection in their back-and forth travels to West Africa and to help them reach out to people back home with information to stop the transmission and spread of the virus. Mr. Deen-Cole suggested that the brochures be distributed to churces, mosques, entertainment spots and throughout the community. He also called on the DOH to identify places and hospitals where medical supplies could be received.

Dr. Prathit Kulkarni stated that he is a physician with the CDC with speciality in the outbreak of diseases. He said that he helps to identify possible cases of Ebola and offers advice to the CDC. He assured Minister Kanu and others that he will convey to the CDC their appeals for help with medical supplies to Sierra Leone and ebola-affected countries.

The importance of information and sensitization was stressed at the meeting. CDC and DOH officials postulated that because of the tremendous influence West Africans have with relatives back home, they could sensitize them effectively. They suggested the use of telephone text messages about the dos and donts of Ebola which would play a significant role in stopping the transmission of the virus.

In his closing remarks, the moderator Rev. Chukunta , thanked everybody for their input and described all the suggestions as important .He noted that there are things that the CDC and DOH can do and things that the community can do for itself and he promised to continue the dialogue.

Manso Turay

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