Government Issues Mandatory Health Advisory for Returning Ebola Response Workers
Sia Lucy Kannah The Government of Sierra Leone’s National Public Health Agency (NPHA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MoH), has issued a public health advisory for medical personnel returning to the country after participating in Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) response activities in affected countries, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Uganda, and other Ebola-affected nations.
The NPHA stated that although Sierra Leone remains Ebola-free, the risk of importation continues to pose a public health concern.
According to the advisory, all returning healthcare workers, laboratory personnel, epidemiologists, and emergency responders are required to immediately notify the NPHA upon arrival, providing full deployment details and contact information.
They are also required to undergo immediate health assessment and comply with a 21-day monitoring period from their last potential exposure. During this period, returnees must self-monitor twice daily for symptoms such as fever, severe headache, muscle pain, fatigue, sore throat, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, or unexplained bruising and bleeding.
The advisory further states that any individual who develops symptoms must immediately isolate and contact the NPHA or local health authorities, and should not report directly to a health facility without prior notification.
In addition, healthcare institutions employing returning staff have been instructed to notify the NPHA, support monitoring processes, and maintain strict infection prevention and control (IPC) measures.
Public health officials emphasized that deployment to Ebola-affected areas does not mean an individual has contracted the virus.
“These precautionary measures are routine public health practices designed to ensure early detection of illness and safeguard the health of the individual, their family, colleagues, and the wider community,” the NPHA stated.
The agency expressed appreciation for health professionals involved in international outbreak response efforts, while urging continued vigilance and prompt reporting of symptoms.
