SCIENCE MAGAZINE                             Oct. 30, 2014

A study to assess the effectiveness of containment strategies, using a stochastic model of Ebola transmission between and within the general community, hospitals, and funerals, calibrated to incidence data from Liberia.

ABSTRACT

The ongoing Ebola outbreak poses an alarming risk to the countries of West Africa and beyond. To assess the effectiveness of containment strategies, we developed a stochastic model of Ebola transmission between and within the general community, hospitals, and funerals, calibrated to incidence data from Liberia. We find that a combined approach of case isolation, contact tracing with quarantine and sanitary funeral practices must be implemented with utmost urgency in order to reverse the growth of the outbreak. Under status quo intervention, our projections indicate that the Ebola outbreak will continue to spread, generating a predicted 224 (95% CI: 134 – 358) cases daily in Liberia alone by December, highlighting the need for swift application of multifaceted control interventions.

REUTERS                                                                                          Oct. 30, 2014

(GENEVA)- The World Bank pledged $100 million on Thursday to help recruit more foreign health workers in the fight against Ebola, taking its funding for the three worst-hit countries to more than half a billion dollars over the past three months.

People sit near a banner reading ''The Ministry of Agriculture, Dixinn Commune, Together to defeat Ebola,'' in Conakry, Guinea October 26, 2014.Credit: Reuters/Michelle Nichols

The latest tranche will go towards setting up a coordination hub to recruit, train and deploy qualified foreign health workers and support the three countries' efforts to isolate Ebola patients and bury the dead safely, the bank said.

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http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/10/30/us-health-ebola-worldbank-idUSKBN0IJ1NV20141030

The Argus arrives with supplies and medical personnel to assist Serra Leone

 BBC                                                              Oct. 30, 2010

By AndrewHarding

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone--  A British Navy support ship ship has arrived in Sierra Leone to help deal with the deadly Ebola outbreak in the West African country.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary Argus is carrying food, medical equipment, three helicipeters and 32 pick-up trucks, to help keep hard-pressed Ebola treatment centres going.

Doctors, nurses and military personnel are also on board.

The BBC's Africa correspondent Andrew Harding said it would act as an offshore base for the aid effort. and described it as an "important moment".

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http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-29836657

JOURNAL OF AMERICAN MEDICICAL ASSOCIATION      Oct. 28, 2014
Michael B. Edmond, MD, MPH, MPA¹; Daniel J. Diekema, MD, MS¹; Eli N. Perencevich, MD, MS

"...it is clear that reengineering of personal protecion equipment is required, both in US hospitals but more critically for the outbreak zones in Africa. The use of cumbersome PPE in the extreme heat and difficult working conditions of Ebola treatment centers in Africa places great stress on health care workers and limits the time they can spend providing patient care.

" A novel approach to PPE that provides an impermeable fluid barrier that is both more comfortable and easier to don and remove would be a substantial step forward.

"This will require new materials and designs. Indeed, the US Agency for International Development, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, CDC, and US Department of Defense have recently announced a campaign to develop and test innovations for PPE in response to the Ebola outbreak."

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http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1920943