WHO supports the Democratic Republic of the Congo to contain a yellow fever outbreak

Kisenso, the latest health zone affected by yellow fever

Kisenso health zone is a lush, rural district that sits on a hill above Kinshasa. It is home to 400 000 people, most of whom live in acute poverty.

Environmental determinants of health

Mosquito-borne diseases thrive in the rich green vegetation. The situation is made worse due to a lack of infrastructure, such as running water and accessible roads.

Yellow fever outbreak affects young and old

The Lubaki family has been severely affected by the yellow fever outbreak. 13-year-old Moïse, their eldest son died in early June and 2-year-old Kelly is seriously ill in hospital where Mrs Lubaki is by his bedside. 9-year-old Morgan (pictured far left) was also sick but has recovered.

Daily disease surveillance essential to stop the outbreak

Dr Valentin Ndaye Shimiye is Chief Medical Officer of Kisenso Health Zone. Each health zone centre has been provided with a mobile phone to send daily notification of new suspect cases in their area. Here Dr Shimiye visits the marketplace to monitor surveillance efforts. Daily monitoring is vital to track the spread of the disease and ensure an effective response.

Supporting surveillance efforts

WHO, with the support of partners, is supporting surveillance efforts by sending teams into the local health zones to actively search out new suspect cases of yellow fever. Blood samples are collected to confirm whether they have yellow fever in order to commence treatment.

Local health workers make a difference

Carine Wedjelo is 1 of 2 community health educators working in the Kisenso health zone. Mrs Wedjelo strives to convince families to sleep under mosquito nets and bring their sick relatives to the local health centre as soon as they have fever or other symptoms of mosquito-borne diseases.

“But many people say they are worried about the cost of health care or believe they will die if they are hospitalized. So they go to traditional healers and witch doctors in the belief that local cures such as boiled sugar cane will heal them,” she says.

The importance of routine immunization

Despite efforts of the small local health centres, many people remain unvaccinated for yellow fever. The vaccination is not given until infants are 9-months-old and babies often miss out on health check-ups and vaccinations.

Vaccination crucial to contain the outbreak

More than 2 million people in Kinshasa have been vaccinated in mass campaigns held in late May 2016 to control the outbreak. With the support of WHO and partners, the government plans to vaccinate a further 3 million people in other health zones in the country.