The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Minister of Health, and Canada's Chief Public Health Officer, Dr. Gregory Taylor, today announced that the Government of Canada has deployed a third mobile laboratory and two additional Public Health Agency of Canada scientists to Sierra Leone.
The team will spend a week in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Brussels, Belgium training with Doctors Without Borders before travelling to Sierra Leone on January 18th.
Once in Sierra Leone, the team will be assisting Doctors Without Borders physicians in Magburaka by testing samples from Ebola patients to support their ongoing clinical care.
The tests performed by this mobile laboratory will provide physicians with timely information about the health of their patients, such as electrolytes level, blood chemistry and indicators of renal and liver health, that will allow healthcare workers to design care plans specific to the patient’s needs.
This team is being deployed alongside the Agency’s two other existing mobile laboratory teams that are providing laboratory capabilities to diagnose Ebola in Kailahun and Magburaka, Sierra Leone. With this third team on the ground, the Agency currently has six scientists in Sierra Leone operating three mobile laboratories.
The Government of Canada remains committed to aiding in the response to this outbreak, both for humanitarian reasons and to protect global public health.
Canada is a leader in fighting Ebola and continues to contribute to the outbreak response in West Africa. The Government of Canada has committed more than $110 million, to support health, humanitarian, and security interventions both at home and abroad to address Ebola.
"Agency Scientists are proud to assist Doctors Without Borders in providing care for Ebola patients in West Africa. This enhanced mobile laboratory will not only provide diagnosis and clinical care support, but it will also provide much needed diagnostic advice to physicians," said, Dr. Gregory Taylor chief public health officer of Canada.
Canada is a leader in fighting Ebola and continues to contribute to the outbreak response in West Africa. The Government of Canada has committed more than $110 million, to support health, humanitarian, and security interventions both at home and abroad to address Ebola.