Tackling Ebola in Africa: a warning to the world

The recent outbreak of Ebola virus disease killed more than 11,000 people in the West African countries of Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia. As the death toll in West Africa but also elsewhere rose, it became apparent that potentially infected patients could present to emergency departments across the world. An international response was needed to contain the disease and prevent its rapid spread. This article describes a British military-run treatment centre in Kerry Town, Sierra Leone, and discusses how standard nursing practices were adapted to manage this high-risk situation. It also highlights the difficulties of nursing patients with a contagious disease that has no licensed cure or vaccine.