How Germany is training medical staff to fight Ebola

Safety goggles, masks, and full body suits. Patients with the Ebola virus must be treated under strict safety precautions. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the number of infections has now risen to over 9,000. While Germany has special isolation wards, resources on the ground are still limited. A simulation shows how teams from the Charité Hospital in Berlin are teaching safe treatment procedures to medics in the Congo. Since the Ebola outbreak began in June, the Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development has increased its aid by 21 million euros, including funding for protective gear. Because of the local climate conditions, protective clothing can only be worn for about an hour, which means tens of thousands of sets of protective gear are used every day. Germany is also sending medical professionals to the affected regions. for one week to train a clinical team of about 30 employees. But the training is really essential to ensure that the staff is not infected and that they know how to work safely when they are in the red area, i.e. in patient care. Goethe has completed seven trips this year and the next one is already being planned. The ultimate goal is to create a pool of specialists throughout East Africa Africa who in turn can pass on their expertise and thus help contain the Ebola virus locally.