PHEIC: MSF's reaction to WHO's declaration

Dr Joanne Liu, International President of MSF

Wednesday, July 17, 2019 — “The signs are clear: people are still dying in the communities, health workers are still infected, and transmission is still going on. The epidemic is not under control and we need a change of gear: but this should not be about movement restrictions or the use of coercion on  the affected population. Communities and patients need to be at the centre of the response, they need to be active participants.  MSF has experienced first hand how difficult it is to respond to this epidemic.  We need to take stock of what is working and what is not working. In a context where contact tracing is not working fully, and all affected people are not reached, a large scale approach is needed for prevention, this means better access to vaccination for the population to reduce transmission.”