MSF Begins Admitting Patients to Ebola Center in Monrovia, Liberia

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) admitted nine patients today into its newly constructed ELWA 3 Ebola Management Center in Monrovia, Liberia, beginning a process of scaling up operations at the 120-bed facility.

An Ebola outbreak continues to rage virtually unchecked in this city of approximately one million people, far exceeding the capacity of the few medical facilities accepting Ebola patients. Much of the city’s health system has shut down over fears of Ebola among staff members and patients, leaving many people without treatment for other conditions.

The first nine patients at ELWA 3 were among those seeking treatment at another Ebola center, ELWA 2, which is currently run by the Ministry of Health. MSF will increase the number of patients at ELWA 3 in the coming days, as newly trained staff members gain experience with the safety procedures. MSF currently has 19 international and 250 national staff members in Monrovia.