A call to safeguard sexual and reproductive health information and services during Ebola outbreaks

Nguyen Toan Tran; Désirée Lichtenstein; Benjamin Black; Alice Rosmini; Catrin Schulte-Hillen

doi:10.1186/s13031-021-00392-3

A call to safeguard sexual and reproductive health information and services during Ebola outbreaks

Confl Health. 2021 Jul 10;15(1):57. doi: 10.1186/s13031-021-00392-3.

Authors

Nguyen Toan Tran^{1

2}, Désirée Lichtenstein³, Benjamin Black⁴, Alice Rosmini⁵, Catrin Schulte-Hillen³

Affiliations

¹ Australian Centre for Public and Population Health Research, Faculty of Health, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. nguyentoan.tran@uts.edu.au.
² Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland. nguyentoan.tran@uts.edu.au.
³ United Nations Population Fund, Humanitarian Office, Geneva, Switzerland.
⁴ Médecins Sans Frontières, Doctors Without Borders (MSF), London, UK.
⁵ United Nations Population Fund, West and Central Africa Regional Office, Dakar, Senegal.

Abstract

The recent Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks in 2021 exemplify how sexual and reproductive health services are too often considered unessential during health emergencies. Bleeding for reasons other than EVD, such as pregnancy complications or rape, can be construed as EVD symptoms, reinforcing fear and stigmatisation, and delaying timely access to adequate care. In this commentary, we urgently call on all humanitarian actors to integrate the Minimum Initial Services Package for Sexual and Reproductive Health in Crisis Situations into current and future EVD preparedness and response efforts.

Publication types

Letter