By Stan Friedman

CHICAGO, IL (October 16, 2014) — Longtime Covenant World Relief partner Medical Teams International (MTI) is seeking medical personnel to help with efforts to fight the Ebola outbreak in Liberia. Covenant World Relief also is accepting donations to help MTI’s work in that country.

In an email, Joe DiCarlo, MTI director of emergency relief and global security, wrote that the organization is “partnering with the Ministry of Health to ensure proper Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) standards are met at 240 public and private primary health care facilities in Montserrado County. To achieve this, MTI has established Infection Prevention and Control Teams to provide regular monitoring visits to all health centers and health clinics (governmental and private/Faith Based Organization).”

Each team is comprised of one MTI clinical staff (physician assistant or registered nurse) and one county health and social welfare team member to conduct visits. “During the visits, the team members assess the quality of control and prevention measures taken in health facilities using a standard checklist focusing on triage, infection prevention standards during patient care, IPC supplies, and water and waste management infrastructure.”

DiCarlo said MTI needs volunteers with a very strong background in IPC to accompany the teams on routine visits. The volunteers would serve as a member of the team and would be responsible for portions of the checklist and providing expert advice on how to improve prevention and control at the facilities and in the community.

The organization prefers doctors with international experience but also will accept nurse practitioners, RNs, and PAs. Volunteers would stay for three or more weeks. Teams will begin traveling to Liberia on October 27. Volunteers will be needed at least through December and possibly into 2015.

DiCarlo emphasized that the IPC teams “do not provide clinical care at the health facilities and are instructed to provide no hands-on coaching or correction while there. IPC Team members are expected to not come in contact with health-facility staff, patients or facility materials, equipment, supplies or medicines. IPC Team members must also sign an agreement form that they will do their best to adhere to non-contact and will be asked to leave the IPC Team if they willfully or knowingly violate this policy. Foreign volunteers will also be held to this standard.”

Anyone interested in volunteering should email Dave Husby, CWR executive director.