'When fear takes over': Responding to the DRC's largest Ebola outbreak

The Democratic Republic of Congo is grappling with a severe shortage of healthcare professionals to manage its rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak, which the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned could surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic as the deadliest in recorded history. As of now, the country has recorded 7,773 confirmed cases and 3,759 deaths, with the epidemic expanding across seven provinces. Despite recent declines in certain regions, transmission remains unpredictable and largely uncontrolled.

In the eastern province of North Kivu, the number of cases has surged by seventy-three percent over three weeks, although cases and deaths eventually began to decline following weeks of increases. Health authorities are adding new treatment beds daily, but facilities continue to face critical staffing and operational challenges.

Compounding the crisis are multiple factors such as armed insecurity, widespread population displacement, massive movement, and ongoing health worker strikes, which create extreme operational hurdles. The current trajectory threatens to eclipse past crises, with the WHO reporting that this epidemic is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak, which remains the deadliest on record with over 11,000 fatalities.

Staffing shortages are crippling medical responses, with each Ebola treatment centre requiring approximately 300 professionals, including general practitioners, nurses, hygienists, and anaesthetists. The government has launched a verification process for payroll lists after discovering ghost workers and unauthorised names added to response rosters, but wage disputes and payroll verification delays have resulted in many health workers receiving only partial or no pay.

This has led to job actions among front-line workers who previously launched strikes over unpaid wages, severely damaging patient access to care.