Countries in West Africa suffered most on the Ebola outbreak, and, now, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Guinea free of Ebola.

According to the New York Times, the three hard-hit countries, namely Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia, have finally stopped the origin of the epidemic and the Ebola transmission has apparently ceased. Guinea went on a 21-day incubation after the last known victim of the said virus showed negative tests twice when health officials did some testing. The next step is to put Guinea on a three-month observation period, which is a crucial time for the Ebola outbreak to re-emerge.

 

According to BBC, Guinea is the last country among the three that has been declared free of Ebola transmission. In September, Liberia was announced free of the outbreak followed by Sierra Leone in November.

The basis of the declaration was the country's zero rates of Ebola cases after the 21-day incubation period. While some cases can re-appear just like what happened in Liberia, they are deemed easier to control. Alama Kambou Dore, a survivor of the outbreak said, "It's the best year-end present that God could give to Guinea, and the best news that Guineans could hope for."

Local health workers, however, continue to warn people to stay vigilant and be more careful in order to avoid getting in contact with the virus.

According to Dr. Rick Brennan, director of Ebola response in Geneva, what's left now is to provide a sturdy rebuilding of the health system in the country and to educate the people on how to become more aware of the epidemic in the future.

In an estimate given by WHO, around 11,000 people suffered from the outbreak and more than 28,000 were sickened by it. By the time the epidemic was identified, the outbreak already affected thousands, making it harder for health officials to contain the virus.

All that's left now for the people of Guinea is to rebuild what they lost by rebuilding their means of living and continuing their plans to travel abroad. Guinea will remain under surveillance until such time that the epidemic is completely controlled.

The last victim of the Ebola virus, a three-week-old girl, is currently under medication, using the antibody combination of ZMapp and the antiviral compound from Ginead. Dr. Letizia Di Stefano confirmed that the little girl is doing well and they will continue to follow up on her development.