Geneva: A shortage of trained health workers, operational partners and funding is creating a bottleneck in efforts to expand the Ebola response in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The outbreak has spread beyond its initial epicentre in Bunia and is now affecting six provinces, prompting authorities to adopt a more decentralised strategy by establishing treatment centres closer to newly affected communities.
According to the WHO, the Democratic Republic of Congo's outbreak of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola has exceeded 6,000 cases and 3,175 deaths, making it the country's deadliest Ebola epidemic to date.
WHO technical officer Luca Fontana said nearly 1,400 treatment beds have already been established across 59 treatment centres, describing it as one of the fastest Ebola response scale-ups he has witnessed, including during the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola epidemic.
"Yet, despite this extraordinary effort, we estimate that another 1,600 beds will be required," Fontana said.
WHO estimates that approximately three health workers are needed for every Ebola treatment bed. Expanding capacity to around 3,000 beds would therefore require roughly 9,000 health workers, including the recruitment and training of about 5,000 additional medical personnel.
Fontana said the number of international organisations capable of operating Ebola treatment centres remains limited, partly because of broader declines in global donor funding.
Health authorities continue efforts to expand treatment capacity and strengthen the response as the outbreak spreads across northeastern parts of the country.