RICHMOND, Va. — An American doctor with ties to the Richmond region has tested positive for Ebola while working with a medical missionary organization in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Dr. Peter Stafford was exposed while treating patients in the Congolese city of Bunia, according to the missionary group Serge. Before moving to Africa, Stafford and his family lived in Richmond while he completed his fellowship in burn surgery at VCU Medical Center in 2022, a VCU Health spokesperson confirmed.
Health
American doctor diagnosed with Ebola tied to outbreak in Africa
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Peter Stafford, his wife Dr. Rebekah Stafford, their colleague Dr. Patrick Lorochelle, and the Staffords' 4 children are being transported to Germany for treatment and observation. Peter Stafford is the only person currently showing symptoms after exposure to this particular strain of the Ebola virus, according to the CDC.
Rebekah Stafford is also a doctor who works with Serge, the religious aid group.
The current outbreak involves the Bundibugyo Ebolavirus variant — only the third known outbreak of this strain. It has no vaccine or treatment and is transmitted through bodily fluids. The World Health Organization reports more than 250 suspected cases and 80 suspected deaths so far across the Congo and neighboring Uganda.
Grace Tran, who was part of an Ebola response team that partnered with USAID before funding was eliminated by the Trump administration last year, said the scale of the outbreak may be larger than currently understood.
"The earliest cases went undetected. They didn't test for this particular strain of Ebola so it could have been going on for a few weeks. My concern is this thing is big and I think it's bigger than we realize," Tran said.
Tran also raised concerns about the loss of preparedness infrastructure.
"Response is very complicated and there's a lot of training that has to go into this to make sure that the response is done well. That funding disappeared, funding for the Ebola programs disappeared last year," Tran said.
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