Ebola Health Hero: Dr. Peter Kilmarx, Sierra Leone

Thursday, September 19, 2014: I arrived at my hotel room in Sierra Leone at 6:45am—40 hours after we left home. I had time for a quick shower before my first team meeting at 7:30am. It was a long day of meetings with the team, Embassy, USAID, WHO, and UN agencies. I finally got back to my hotel room at midnight and, for the first time in two days, slept in a bed. There is a lot of work to do, and every day counts.

This is just one post from the personal record Dr. Peter Kilmarx kept during his one-month detail to Sierra Leone, where he served as the CDC Ebola Response Team Leader. Peter’s team worked as part of the interagency Disaster Assistance Response Team, led by fellow CDCer, Dr. Jonathan Mermin.

“Our work was varied, spanning from surveillance to database maintenance to infection control to patient education, and I was fortunate to be leading a highly skilled and dedicated team,” states Peter. “The team had to quickly mobilize and learn on-the-go in order to be responsive to the specific needs of the country, and each person wore several hats. Team members routinely worked long hours and travelled to the highest transmission districts in the country, putting the rubber to the road where assistance was needed most. There was much to be done amidst a period of high uncertainty, fear, and limited resources, and I am so proud of the work we were able to accomplish.”

By the time Peter’s detail ended in mid-October, CDC staff were working in seven of the most affected districts in Sierra Leone. His team developed a shortened case investigation form, completed ambulance assessments, developed the first official country guidance document on safe burials, and held meetings with partners to discuss best practices for care, infection prevention, and service delivery. They also led discussions on complex issues around quarantine and “no-touch” home care with a diverse set of stakeholders and continuously used call-center data to monitor the epidemic and inform planning.

Additionally, Peter’s team provided interim home protection and support plans for people who were sick at home and could not immediately access treatment in a clinic or hospital. The team observed that there were a large number of people dying of dehydration or other complications at home because they had no access to transportation and/or there were no care beds available to them at a nearby treatment facility. Peter’s team helped implement and promote the provision of oral rehydration solutions and other support to people in their homes. In the meantime, CDC continues to support the planning for more hospital beds as well as additional safe, reliable, and accessible modes of transportation for patients at home who need to access treatment.

“I feel so grateful for the opportunity to serve in this effort and help relieve the suffering of this great country and its people,” says Peter. “CDC staff are doing amazing work in the field and I feel so fortunate to be a part of it.”

 

Ebola Health Hero: Dr. Nancy Knight, Nigeria

Dr. Nancy Knight, Director of CDC’s South Africa office, completed a one-month detail to Nigeria, where she served as CDC Team Lead in Nigeria’s two Ebola Emergency Operations Centers (EOCs), located in Lagos and Port Harcourt.

Nancy was asked specifically to deploy to Nigeria due to her previous experience in the country. “My first CDC assignment was in Nigeria. It was personally very gratifying for me to be able to go back and work with people that I knew and to help a country that had been my home for three and a half years. Additionally, to be part of something that has such a massive impact on the world was so rewarding.”

CDC staff in Nigeria’s EOCs worked in a variety of areas—infection control, case management, media coordination, points of entry, training local staff, and more. The overall coordination of such a massive response in such a short timeframe was an immense undertaking and Nancy’s role was crucial, enabling these operational teams to address problems and implement solutions efficiently and effectively.

“It was invigorating to have been part of such a dynamic and dedicated team,” states Nancy. “It was inspiring to see people come together and apply their diverse experiences to create such a positive result. Everybody was laser focused on achieving the goal of getting rid of Ebola in Nigeria and, with the help of everybody involved, we met that goal! It’s exciting to have been part of this effort and to congratulate strangers and old friends alike on Nigeria’s huge success. I am so grateful for this opportunity.”