Building a High-Level Isolation Unit in Rwanda and Establishing a Training Program for the Medical Management of Patients With High-Consequence Infectious Diseases.

Rwanda is a country in East Africa, a region characterized by highly mobile populations and outbreaks of high-consequence infectious diseases occurring on a regular basis. To increase the level of outbreak preparedness in the region, the Rwandan government and the German Ministry of Health signed a joint agreement to construct a new high-level isolation unit in Rwanda, the first in East Africa, and implement a training program for Rwandan healthcare workers to equip them with the necessary skills and knowledge for medical management of patients under high-level isolation conditions, including intensive care treatment. To better understand the scope and format of the planned training program, a needs assessment was performed based on findings from a standardized survey of 4 intensive care units in Rwanda as well as observations from 2 members of a German high-level isolation unit who completed clinical internships at Rwandan hospitals.

[Infections of the lungs in returning travellers].

Travellers to foreign countries can acquire infections with pathogens that are not endemic in Germany. In light of the steadily increasing foreign travel these infections in returning travellers are of growing importance. Older travellers and those with underlying diseases constitute a special risk group.