Healthcare workers urged to prioritise safety amid Ebola Outbreak

Healthcare workers have been urged to prioritise their safety and health amid the ongoing outbreak of the Bundibugyo Ebola virus strain, as calls intensify for the government to ensure adequate supplies of medical equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Speaking during the joint World Dental Federation (FDI), Africa Regional Congress and 43rd Annual Kenya Dental Association (KDA), Scientific Conference and Exhibition in Mombasa, themed “Advancing Dentistry in Africa”, Kenya Medical Association (KMA), President Dr Ibrahim Matende urged healthcare professionals to exercise caution in the wake of the outbreak.

As of October 20, the Ministry of Health had confirmed nine Ebola cases, including the first imported case from the Democratic Republic of Congo. All subsequent cases were linked to the initial case, and the individuals had already been placed under quarantine.

The Ministry confirmed that there was no evidence of community transmission. Of the 135 identified contacts, 134 had been traced and quarantined, while eight patients were receiving appropriate supportive care from dedicated clinical teams.

“You do not have the liberty to know the case until you have been exposed. It is not that somebody tells you a patient is coming, and this is not only the medics, but even the dental patients who come to you do not tell you where they travelled,” Dr Matende said.

“It is until you enquire in history, and so my request to all of you as medics is please practise self-healthcare,” he added.

The KMA president further urged the government to intensify efforts to protect healthcare workers, describing them as frontline personnel in the fight against the outbreak.

“I need PPEs, I need humane isolation, and I need effort in providing relevant medication. I don’t have the liberty as a medic to choose whom I treat,” he said, urging healthcare workers to continue providing standard services to patients.

Former World Medical Association (WMA) President, Dr Jacqueline Kitulu, noted that oral health was integral to overall health, quality of life, nutrition and healthy ageing.

“Yet across much of Africa, it still does not receive the priority it deserves. If we are serious about Universal Health Coverage, oral health must be part of comprehensive people-centred primary health care,” Dr Kitulu said.

She called for greater collaboration among medical associations, noting that the future of healthcare depended on interprofessional cooperation and a shared commitment to improving the health of patients and communities.

“We also have to invest in the people who deliver that care. Africa needs a strong and well-supported dental workforce with good training, continuing professional development, strong research, and a fairer distribution of professionals across our countries,” she said.

Dentists were also encouraged to embrace innovation, with digital health and artificial intelligence identified as tools that could help expand access to services and improve patient care.

“Technology must always be guided by ethics, professional responsibility, patient safety, and most importantly, human judgement,” Dr Kitulu said.

She further emphasised the need for Africa to have a stronger voice in shaping the global health agenda.

Reflecting on her tenure as WMA president, she noted that, together with other African medical associations, she had helped launch the Coalition of African National Medical Associations.

“The principle is simple. When we come together, our voices are stronger. I believe dentistry has the same opportunity to strengthen African leadership, build partnerships across professions, and ensure that African priorities are heard globally,” she said.

KDA President, Dr Kahura Mundia, said the congress would provide dental professionals with an opportunity to exchange knowledge, strengthen partnerships and engage with innovations shaping the future of oral healthcare.

“Our theme challenges us to consider what advancing dentistry in Africa means. It calls for clinical excellence and innovation, but equally for greater access to oral health, strong professional standards, investments in education, and the development of a skilled, future-ready dental workforce,” he said.