Speaking at the Ministry of Information during a news conference aired live on state radio ELBC on Tuesday, September 23, Dr. Omorutu said the Island Clinic was a new Eblola Treatment Unit that still needed a lot of support. “We need people to come; we need the survivals to come and help us with blood donation, especially. We also need anyone else who can do it to give us blood,” she said.
She noted that Ebola consumes the substances that help “the body” system to repair itself, thereby causing patients to bleed after the pothholes in their blood vessels had been deepened.
“So, when we get fresh blood, these protein substances are … in fresh blood from anybody. So when we give this fresh blood to the patients, we give them the repair- the road materials for repairing their blood vessels. And therefore, they do not bleed,” said Doctor Omorutu.
As such, she said, her appeal is that anybody who’s willing to give blood should come forth, saying “the blood bank is ready to receive any blood donor.” Directing the public to the blood transfusion service on 24th Street, Sinkor, she made specific request to Ebola survivals that are strong, because she said, they have the antibodies, otherwise called “the soldiers” that have fought and defeated the Ebola virus.
The WHO consultant indicated that that if individual blood donors are unable to donate the full unit of 450 mills, “we would be happy to take whatever amount.”
In the same vein, Dr. Omorutu has disclosed that the newly opened Ebola Treatment Center at the Island Clinic on Bushrod Island is now turning patients away after exhausting its 150 bed capacities.
Since Sunday, September 21, she said, Island Clinic has had a transfer of more than 100 confirmed Ebola patients from Redemption Hospital. By 8am on Monday, September 22, she said: “we had a total of 119 cases,” but noted that seven of them had unfortunately died from 3pm on Sunday to 8am on Monday.
She, additionally, noted that from 8am on Monday to 8am on Tuesday, the Clinic had 74 new admissions, arriving at a total of 186 cases from the time the clinic was opened on Sunday.
Up to Tuesday, Madam Omorutu said the clinic had a total of 20 deaths in the two days, and that two of the deceased from Nimba County had died in the ambulance, while others died shortly after being transferred to Island Clinic. Announcing a total of 173 patients were now admitted at Island Clinic, she said “unfortunately” they have to turn away some patients because there was no more space.
Notwithstanding, Madam Omorutu concluded that the Government of Liberia has got more support to built Ebola Treatment Units, but said it will take at least three or four weeks before another Unit can be ready in addition to what is available.