Highlights
Three new Ebola cases were confirmed in Monrovia, Liberia. The first to be diagnosed, on 19 November, was a 15-year-old boy who subsequently died. His brother and father also tested positive. Investigations into the possible source of infection are ongoing.
On 1 December, Liberia’s Ministry of Health announced that it had begun offering an experimental Ebola vaccine on a voluntary basis to people who may have been exposed to the virus in the outbreak that started on 19 November.
As of 1 December, no new cases were reported in Guinea or Sierra Leone. Guinea has started the 42-day countdown towards declaring the end of human-to-human Ebola transmission.
On 27 November in Conakry, Guinea, a three-day workshop on accelerated access to vaccines against viral haemorrhagic fevers and other emerging epidemics was organized by the Government, with the support of WHO and UNICEF.
WHO is strengthening preparedness through a series of simulation exercises to test and improve Ebola Emergency Response Plans.
Epidemiological status
Three new Ebola cases were confirmed in Monrovia. They are two brothers and their father. On 23 November, one of the boys died four days after testing positive. Investigations into the possible source of infection are ongoing.
As of 29 November in Liberia, 165 contacts have been identified, including 13 health care workers at high risk.
All contacts are being monitored. These are the first new Ebola cases in Liberia since the country was declared free from human-to-human Ebola virus disease (EVD) transmission on 3 September 2015. Approximately 40 health facilities in the area surrounding the cluster have been identified for targeted support as per the ring-IPC protocol. A field coordination team has been established by the Ministry of Health (MoH) and is being co-led by WHO.As of 1 December, no new cases have been reported in Guinea or Sierra Leone. Guinea has started the 42-day countdown towards declaring the end of human-to-human Ebola transmission. Sierra Leone has entered a 90-day period of enhanced surveillance, which is scheduled to conclude on 5 February 2016.