An American physician who was exposed to an Ebola patient while in Uganda is being flown to a specialized hospital in Prague for observation, according to Czech health authorities.
The medical professional is not displaying any signs of the lethal disease and will be admitted to the facility for monitoring purposes after the United States made the request, Health Minister Adam Vojtech announced on X Wednesday.
The current Ebola crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has resulted in more than 130 fatalities, with additional cases reported in neighboring Uganda.
Prague’s Faculty Hospital Bulovka, which focuses on treating infectious diseases, announced Tuesday night that the individual was being flown in using an isolation transport unit and was scheduled to land Wednesday evening.
“The case does not pose a risk to the public in the Czech Republic, and procedures for similar situations are clearly set,” the hospital said.
On Saturday, World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus classified the outbreak of the uncommon Bundibugyo strain as a public health emergency of international concern, marking the first instance a WHO chief has made such a declaration without first assembling an emergency committee.
Health experts are particularly concerned about this outbreak because it managed to circulate undetected for several weeks throughout a heavily populated region affected by extensive armed conflict.
A previous outbreak in eastern Congo that lasted from 2018 to 2020 became the second most fatal on record, claiming nearly 2,300 lives.
