By Leonard Kamugisha Akida,
REGIONAL
Health authorities in Mitooma district, southwestern Uganda have confirmed that a suspected case of ebola tested negative.
On Wednesday, local media reported that one person with suspected Ebola signs in Bitereko sub-county, Ruhinda North county had died a previous day. The deceased identified as Silver Nuwabeine, 36yrs, a farmer in the area complained of fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and severe headache which are symptoms of ebola.
This caused alarms prompting residents to alert district health officials and was rushed to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital where he died
Samples were taken off from the him and sent to Uganda Virus Research Institute in Entebbe for further laboratory tests.
However, the October 19 medical report by the UVRI indicates that sample results tested negative. This dismisses earlier media reports that the deceased had died of ebola disease.
“Our Ebola suspect is negative. Console our people,” said Mitooma district LCV chairperson, Benon Karyeija.
In a telephone interview with PARROTS UG reporter, Francis Kibuula Amooti, the Mitooma Resident District Commissioner said that the district task force and surveillance teams are tracing another person who travelled with his family from Mubende district a high risk area of ebola to Kabira sub-county in Ruhinda South county.
“We are investigating one person who travelled with his family from Mubende to Kabira sub-county. As the District Task Force which I am heading, we have devised means of fighting ebola through mass sensitization on Radios and the Foras we are in, we don’t want to be put under lockdown like it is in other districts.” RDC Kibuula said
The district surveillance team is also investigating a similar incident inwhich a suspected contact of the ebola death case at Kiruddu hospital travelled to Mutara town council in Mitooma district but escaped after getting knowledge of being hunted.
“We are suspecting another case of a woman alleged to be a contact of the one of the attendants of a death case at Mulago Kiruddu in Kampala. She travelled to Mutara town council and upon receiving this information, we deployed surveillance team but she escaped and went back to Kampala by bus yesterday but one,” Kibuuka told Parrots Media.
He affirmed to residents that the district surveillance team is monitoring all activities within the district especially in education institutions to ensure health and safety of the people as well as compliance to set guidelines on ebola.
