The Vietnamese government has allowed the Ministry of Health to proactively use its standby fund worth VND7.34 billion ($345,000) tailored for countering epidemics in 2014 for preventive measures against Ebola epidemic though no infections have been reported in Vietnam to date. The sum will be used to build up communications and technical materials, organize training, drill and quarantine activities, and purchase chemicals and protection gear. Dr. Tran Dac Phu, head of the ministry’s Preventive Medicine Center, earlier said that the country is at high risk from the Ebola epidemic, with around ten people from Ebola areas entering the country a day. According to the World Health Organization, Ebola can cause fever, vomiting, diarrhea, organ failure and internal and external bleeding. The earlier the virus is detected and the symptoms are treated, the higher the chance of survival is. The current outbreak of Ebola, which is spread via contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person, such as sweat and blood, has taken the lives of 3,439 people out of 7,478 cases across five West African nations – Liberia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Nigeria and Senegal. (VietnamPlus Oct 6)
