Ebola a 'wake-up call' to better prevent disease: WHO

HEALTH

Ebola a 'wake-up call' to better prevent disease: WHO

The Associated Press Published Tuesday, October 20, 2015 10:30AM EDT

The director-general of the World Health Organization WHO , Margaret Chan , speaks during a news conference in Geneva, Tuesday Oct. 20, 2015. The WHO chief called the Ebola crisis in West Africa a 'wake-up call' for member governments to do more to prevent deadly disease outbreaks. (AP Photo Jamey Keaten)

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GENEVA - The director-general of the World Health Organization says the Ebola crisis in West Africa should serve as a "wake-up call" for member states to do more to prevent deadly disease outbreaks before they occur.

Dr. Margaret Chan noted 30 per cent of staffers in a WHO preparedness division were cut after the 2008 financial crisis and funding has remained insufficient since then, despite recommendations to increase support after the swine flu pandemic.

Chan said the Ebola outbreak amounted to a "second wake-up call" and told reporters Tuesday: "I hope this time member states do not miss the opportunity."

Weak leadership, shoddy supplies and infighting worsened the battle against the virus that has killed some 11,000 people mainly in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, and WHO has been criticized for its response.