Ebola outbreak 'growing faster, wider' as DRC death toll passes 2500: UN - Al Jazeera
aljazeera.com
Over 43 healthcare workers have died in DRC's Ebola outbreak, yet many locals believe the disease is a deliberate plot — and that distrust is helping the virus spread faster and wider.
Institutional DistrustInfodemic TheorySocial ContagionRisk Perception Theory
Theory Briefing
- More than 160 healthcare workers have fallen ill and 43 have died, making frontline responders among the hardest-hit groups in the DRC outbreak.
- The UN warns the outbreak is growing both faster and wider, with the death toll now past 2,500.
- Aid workers report widespread local belief that the outbreak is a conspiracy, undermining containment efforts on the ground.
- Distrust of official responders — fuelled by conspiracy theories — can push sick individuals away from treatment centres, accelerating transmission.