Spain is Not Free of Ebola

Forty-two days have elapsed since Teresa Romero’s recovery, and Spain has officially been declared Ebola-free. We read the announcement in the newspaper. But, the truth is that Ebola has not gone away. If this epidemic is not brought under control, Ebola could become the new AIDS.

To control this outbreak and stop it from spreading, the UN estimates that it will be necessary to triple, or even quadruple, the presence of international aid workers in West AfricaTo control this outbreak and stop it from spreading, the UN estimates that it will be necessary to triple, or even quadruple, the presence of international aid workers in West Africa. One of the greatest challenges when contracting specialised personnel is ensuring that they can be evacuated when potentially exposed to Ebola in the course of their work, irrespective of the person’s nationality or who employs them. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that several evacuations will be necessary every month. To date, all the personnel who have been infected or exposed to contagion have had access to medical evacuation, although this has been very expensive due to the lack of forward planning.

Hence the need for Spain to respond positively to the United Nation’s request to use the airport in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria as a base for the transhipment of international aid and future evacuations. This is the moment for the European Union to mount a coordinated and vigorous response through a comprehensive plan that will provide cooperation funds for the countries affected and make available scientific and research capacities. It is also the time to put in place a European plan for evacuations based on the most opportune resources, including the airport in Las Palmas as a transport hub and the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf as a referral centre.

One of the most critical questions is whether we have really learned the lesson that Ebola is a global health problem. The risk that the international community may reduce its already overdue and insufficient response to this epidemic once media coverage fades is a real possibility for which we may pay a very high price. As yet, we do not know what the consequences of the Ebola outbreak will be in the medium term, not only in terms of direct mortality in the affected countries, but also with respect to the impact of the crisis on the living conditions of a population which is no longer receiving the medical care it needs for other diseases that cause more deaths every day than Ebola. As an illustration, more people died of malaria and tuberculosis in the world’s most disadvantaged countries on any one day last year than have died to date in the current Ebola outbreak. Ebola kills people, it consumes resources, and it deprives people of the medical care they need for other diseases. Halting the spread of this disease has to be a responsibility shared by the international community as a whole.

It is also the time to put in place a European plan for evacuations based on the most opportune resources, including the airport in Las Palmas as a transport hubOnce again, the question must be posed: Have we learned our lesson? Have we gained a new awareness of the importance of understanding that funds and resources allocated to global health represent an investment in the welfare of all? Have we learned that maintaining and increasing official aid for cooperation and development is not only an ethical obligation but also a greater guarantee of global security? In short, have we realised for once and for all that the challenges posed by health issues today have no frontiers and that we can no longer sustain a simple and reductionist view that prioritises “our” problems over “their” problems when we know that their problems are also ours.

The circumstances continue to put us to the test, and it is also essential to analyse whether we are paying enough attention to other diseases which, if treated with the same indifference and disregard as Ebola, could become the next pandemic. A good example is the Chikungunya virus, an infection that has so far received very little attention in the European media or in policy discussions.

The Chikungunya virus, which is transmitted by Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, was first described in Tanzania in 1952 since when it has spread throughout Africa, Asia and, more recently, the American continent. There have already been several outbreaks in Europe. The challenge, at a time when we are still engaged in the battle against Ebola, is to take timely action to ensure that viruses such as Chikungunya are controlled and treated to prevent their global spread.

At this time, when the State Budget for the coming year has been debated in the Spanish parliament, we should look closely at the outcome and consider whether our experience with Ebola has had any lasting effect in terms of an increase in the amount Spain has allocated to official development aid, or whether its effect on policy has been just as ephemeral as its echo in the pages and on the screens of the media. Now, more than ever as a new member of the UN Security Council, Spain must demonstrate its commitment to meeting the challenges of global health and engaging in the fight against diseases with a worldwide impact that even extends to our own country.