"More than a year has passed since the first
human contracted the deadly Ebola virus that led to an unprecedented outbreak
in West Africa. So-called patient zero, a two-year-old in the remote Guinean
village of Meliandou, became ill on Dec. 26, 2013, and died two days later.
The World Health Organization, however, did not publish any official notification of
Ebola on its website until March 25 of this year.
Since then, WHO, global aid organisations
and governments from around the world have battled to halt the disease. As the
start of 2015 draws nearer, the epidemic is still raging and has now topped
19,340 reported cases resulting in 7,518 deaths, according to the latest
figures released Monday by the U.N. health agency.
Devex caught up with Dr. Maria Neira,
director of WHO’s Public Health and Environment Department, which focuses on
preventative measures and the root causes of diseases, to know more about how
the Ebola epidemic has affected her work, as well as what lessons she has
learned so far from the response to the outbreak, and how it might change
future WHO operations as a result..."
Read the full article on Devex.com.