When Dr Ezra Mupakasa first developed a fever and headache on January 25, 2025, he suspected it may be one thing frequent – fatigue, maybe, or an odd viral an infection. As a well being employee at Saidina Abubakar Islamic Hospital in Uganda, he was used to being cautious and seeing sufferers come and go together with all kinds of signs.
This time, remembers Dr Mupakasa, the indicators pointed to one thing extra critical. A number of days later, the affirmation got here: a constructive PCR check. Dr Mupakasa had attended to the index case.
Following the affirmation of an outbreak of Sudan virus illness, a pressure of the Ebola virus household identified for its excessive fatality price and with no authorised vaccines, the Authorities of Uganda and companions shortly activated a coordinated response. Sudan virus illness, like different Ebola strains, is a extreme sickness that spreads by way of contact with bodily fluids and may be deadly with out early and enough care.
Dr Mupakasa was swiftly evacuated from the quarantine middle to the Ebola remedy unit, the place he started a 10-day course of remedy. Among the many medication administered was remdesivir, an antiviral that’s been utilized in outbreak settings. Happily, he responded nicely. On February 18, he was discharged.
However surviving the virus was solely a part of the story.
“Bodily, emotionally, psychologically, I’m okay,” he says. “However once you reside in a group the place Ebola is feared, folks see you because the illness.”
Even after discharge, some neighbors stored their distance. The lingering worry of contact, proximity, and contamination was laborious to shake. “They feared us,” he says. “Even once we advised them we had been discharged, it wasn’t till we had our medical certificates that folks really started to imagine we have been protected.”
Dr Mupakasa considers himself fortunate. On the hospital the place he works, he was welcomed again. He has been absolutely reintegrated into the well being system, treating sufferers and dealing alongside colleagues who belief him and perceive the science. He provides, “There aren’t any issues from my shoppers, and my colleagues. We get alongside simply high quality.”
However not all survivors of Ebola have been as lucky.
Dr Mupakasa explains, “Some folks, particularly these working in personal amenities or part-time at personal not-for-profit amenities misplaced jobs. There’s stigma, and financial fallout.”
That is why Dr Mupakasa is advocating for extra structured assist for survivors. He believes the federal government and companions can do extra to combine long-term assist into nationwide restoration plans.
The World Well being Group has been a key companion within the ongoing restoration plans, working alongside the Ministry of Well being and different stakeholders to make sure survivors are usually not forgotten as soon as they go away the remedy unit.
“Our assist doesn’t finish at remedy,” says Dr Kasonde Mwinga, WHO Consultant to Uganda. “Survivors like Dr Mupakasa remind us why restoration should be holistic, medical, social, and in any other case. Reintegration and dignity are simply as important as medical consideration.”
Dr Mupakasa’s story displays the resilience of those that survive outbreaks, whereas underscoring an often-overlooked truth: survival is only one piece of the pie. For Ebola survivors, the highway to full restoration isn’t solely about therapeutic the physique but additionally about rebuilding their lives, livelihoods, and place in society. The combat doesn’t finish with remedy; it should proceed with compassion, acceptance, and sustainable assist methods that acknowledge the long-lasting affect of those illnesses.