A Swiss woman who was the first confirmed Ebola patient in Nigeria’s current outbreak was medically evacuated to Switzerland on Monday. The departure of the patient and her husband, a Swiss diplomat, leaves Nigeria with no active cases of the virus, though health authorities continue to monitor 52 people who were in contact with the couple.
Nigerian Health Minister Muhammad Pate confirmed that the woman left the capital, Abuja, early Monday morning following his official approval. While the patient’s condition had improved significantly and she was described as stable, conscious, and able to communicate, Pate emphasized that she remains infectious. The evacuation was carried out under strict medical protocols to ensure the safety of the flight crew and the public.
Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health reported that the couple arrived later Monday. The woman is receiving specialized treatment at Geneva University Hospital, while her husband, who has not shown symptoms of the virus, is being held in isolation at Zurich University Hospital. Swiss officials stated that both facilities are fully equipped to manage highly infectious diseases and that there is no risk to the Swiss population.
Mohamed Janabi, the World Health Organization’s regional director for Africa, noted that the evacuation was coordinated because the couple are Swiss citizens. He credited Nigerian medical teams with stabilizing the woman through the most acute phase of the illness before the transfer was possible. Despite the lack of current active cases in Nigeria, Janabi and Pate both stressed that vigilance is critical as the 21-day monitoring period continues for the 52 identified contacts.
Investigative tracking shows the woman tested positive after returning to Abuja from Uganda. While authorities have not definitively confirmed the source of her infection, Swiss officials indicated she had not visited the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that both the Nigerian patient and the index case in Kenya traveled through Uganda’s Entebbe International Airport on October 3. Uganda had previously reported Ebola cases but had later declared itself free of the virus.
The regional threat remains significant, particularly in Kenya and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kenya has recorded nine cases and two deaths since its first confirmation earlier this month. On Monday, Kenyan health officials released 20 people from quarantine after they completed 21 days without symptoms, with another 98 contacts expected to be released in the coming week.
In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo virus has reached unprecedented levels. Data from the Congolese health ministry shows more than 9,900 cases and over 4,800 deaths since May. The World Health Organization has labeled this the fastest-spreading Ebola outbreak on record, warning it is on track to surpass the death toll of the 2014-2016 West Africa outbreak, which killed 11,000 people.
