The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) is today calling for a coordinated international response to the unfolding Ebola outbreak in parts of East Africa. The RCN warns that without help to support health authorities in the region, including steps to prevent shortages of essential supplies, including vital PPE, the situation could worsen further.
The outbreak is already putting fragile health services and nursing staff at risk and adding pressure to surveillance, testing, contact tracing, and clinical services in the region.
The RCN is joining the International Council of Nurses, calling for nurses and frontline health workers in DRC, Uganda and surrounding nations to have immediate access to high-quality PPE, screening equipment and the resources required to protect themselves, their patients and their communities.
The RCN has also worked with nursing experts to collate and provide evidence-based Ebola Treatment protocols which have been shared with a large network of nurses working in the region.
The current outbreak is also particularly challenging as the current virus is not currently identifiable through standard Ebola lab testing, nor is there yet an approved vaccine or specific treatment. This makes early detection, isolation, contact tracing, community engagement and safe clinical care even more important.
RCN International Academy Associate Director, Marcus Wootton said:
“We are deeply concerned by the worsening Ebola situation and by the pressure now being placed on nursing staff and health care teams in what are already difficult circumstances.
“The response to the Ebola outbreak requires nursing staff to have access to the right protective equipment that is matched by laboratory support, contact tracing, safe working conditions and access to timely clinical guidance.
“There have been Ebola outbreaks before and the nursing profession knows what needs to be done this time to provide high-quality care to patients. We now urge the global community to move quickly to support nurses and health systems.
“This outbreak shows why sustained investment in global health matters. When surveillance, infection prevention, staffing and basic supplies are weak, outbreaks become harder to contain, and nurses and others carry the risk. Cutting support for health systems is a false economy and very damaging to global health
“The RCN warned last year that cuts to aid would have direct consequences and tragically we are seeing the negative impact of those decisions unfolding in many areas of the world including in this very concerning outbreak. “
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Notes to editors
International Council of Nurses - Nurses on front lines of Ebola outbreak at serious risk: ICN calls for urgent action
The RCN has previously warned that cutting overseas aid makes the UK and the wider world more vulnerable to future global health threats.
In February 2025, the RCN said that reducing the UK international aid budget from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI would further damage global health projects and weaken health systems at a time when nursing shortages are already severe. - Cutting overseas aid budget makes us more vulnerable to future global health threats, says Royal College of Nursing
The World Health Organization has predicted a global shortfall of 4.5 million nurses by 2030, and investment in nursing and health-system capacity is central to outbreak preparedness. - State of the world's nursing report 2025
