Ebola outbreak

Evacuated doctor's colleagues die of Ebola: "I feel helpless"

American doctor Patrick LaRochelle is following his colleagues' fight against Ebola from his plastic bubble in Prague, he tells the Washington Post. He has been evacuated from the deadly virus from the hospital in the hard-hit city of Bunia in Congo-Kinshasa. He has had no symptoms.

- I feel completely helpless, he tells the newspaper.

On his blog, he talks about "Doctor B", a young doctor who fell ill on Wednesday. "It's hard to stop thinking that a doctor I trained is showing signs of bleeding and that there is nothing I can do," Patrick LaRochelle writes on the blog.

He quotes colleagues in the medical team's Whatsapp group:

"Dr. B is urinating on himself, talking nonsense and vomiting."

"Can we give him something sedative? Or will an injection cause a hemorrhage?"

“Can we get protective equipment for one of us?”

They can’t even get any gloves. The death knell reaches LaRochelle during the interview with the Washington Post.

“In my colleagues, I see an incredible mixture of fear and courage, helplessness and hope,” he says.

He himself is receiving the best possible care, and is waiting to be discharged after the end of the isolation period. He hopes to return.

The Ebola outbreak — it’s about the matter

• The Ebola outbreak in Congo-Kinshasa has led to over 220 deaths and about 900 suspected cases, mainly in Ituri province.
• The outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo variant, which lacks both a vaccine and treatment and has a high mortality rate.
• The WHO has declared an international emergency and sent experts to the area, but efforts are being hampered by armed conflict and a lack of infrastructure.
• Unrest has erupted at Ebola centers when relatives were denied access to the dead, leading to fires and the displacement of suspected infected people.
• Several countries have imposed border controls and quarantines, and the United States has imposed entry restrictions on travelers from affected areas.