Ebola survivors cry for better health-care

The president of the Ebola Survivors Network in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone Mr. Patrick Farley says Ebola survivors in Liberia are crying for a better healthcare.

“The survivors are still being stigmatized, some of them are afraid to go to hospital because they will not be treated. The survivors are living below the poverty belt, and some of them are sleeping in churches,” Mr. Farley told a local radio Wednesday, 21 March.

Mr. Farley says his network in the three countries has 11,000 survivors, 5,000 of them from Liberia. He reveals that the Network recently had a convention in Buchanan to present its resolution to government. After Ebola outbreak here, Mr. Farley complains that Liberia only focuses on rebuilding the health sector, but leaves those that were affected by the virus. He discloses that a policy document will be presented to the 54th Legislature.

According to him, they had a very good convention in Buchanan that came up with some resolutions in the interest of survivors, adding that they will also do a presentation to authorities at the Ministry of Health in an effort to find means of reintegrating Ebola survivors.

He observes that what is done for Ebola survivors in Sierra Leone has not been done for those in Liberia. “We prayed that the new Minister of Gender and Health that have come should look at the survivors because we will not go in the streets, we will not demonstrate, we will continue to engage government peacefully because this government is a pro – poor government,” he concludes.

By Ethel A. Tweh–Edited by Winston W. Parley