Health Ministry Sends Ebola Response Protocol to Hospitals as Congo Outbreak Worsens

Israel’s Health Ministry has distributed an initial preparedness protocol to hospitals and Magen David Adom after the Ebola outbreak in Congo and the World Health Organization’s declaration of an international emergency. The document, obtained by Mako Health, lays out how a suspected case in Israel would be handled, from home isolation and no direct arrival at an emergency room, to specialized evacuation and admission to one of five designated hospitals.

Under the protocol, anyone who has been in Congo or Uganda in the past 21 days, or has had contact with a suspected or confirmed Ebola patient, and develops a fever of 38 degrees Celsius or higher, is considered a suspect case. Such a person must remain in home isolation and contact the ministry’s “Kol HaBriut” hotline. Transfer will be carried out only by MDA and only in coordination with the National Health Command Center.

The five hospitals prepared to receive such patients are Ichilov, Sheba, Rambam, Soroka, and Hadassah Ein Kerem. If a suspected patient arrives at another hospital, staff must isolate the person immediately, minimize contact, and avoid physical exams, lab tests, or imaging unless lifesaving treatment is needed. All medical staff must use full protective equipment, and the patient will stay in isolation until final results are received. Diagnosis is based on RT-PCR testing, but a negative test taken within 72 hours of symptom onset does not rule out Ebola, so repeat testing may be required. The ministry says there is currently no vaccine or specific antiviral treatment for the strain behind the current outbreak.

The ministry also stressed that doctors should still consider more common or dangerous diagnoses in any febrile patient returning from Africa, including malaria, rickettsiosis, invasive bacterial infections, and other imported febrile illnesses. The virus incubates for two to 21 days, and people are not contagious until symptoms begin.

Infectious disease specialists said the risk to Israel is low but not zero. Prof. Yael Paran of Ichilov said the current outbreak recalls the major 2014 Ebola crisis and warned that health systems must be ready to identify and treat any suspected case quickly. Dr. Daniel Gropl of Hadassah Ein Kerem said Israel is preparing in advance, but added that Ebola is spread mainly through direct contact with body fluids, not like coronavirus, so the wider public faces very low risk unless it has direct exposure.