Members of Rhode Island’s Liberian community are cheering news that the last Ebola patient in Liberia has been released. But many remain concerned about the future of Liberia.
Matthew Kai is the leader of the Tabernacle Baptist Church in Providence. His congregation is primarily Liberian. Kai led them through months of anxiety at the height of the Ebola outbreak. He says things have quieted down since then… but now he fears world aid will evaporate
Kai said his biggest fear is a pulling back of aid as Ebola dwindles in Liberia. He hopes that international health organizations will keep doctors in the country.
“My own hope is that they will put things in place, and perhaps keep a skeleton staff over there who would maintain the healthcare system. Ebola is gone, but the effects are still there,” said Kai.
He said those effects include high numbers of children orphaned by the disease. About 10-thousand people are estimated to have died of Ebola in West Africa. Kai said he fears that the disease could quickly flair up again. Several Ebola vaccines are currently being developed.
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