A British emergency medical team deployed to support Tunisian health services in the fight against the Covid-19 crisis

Following a request from the Tunisian government, experts from the United Kingdom Emergency Medical Team (UK EMT), supported by the British Public Health Rapid Support Team (UK-PHRST) arrived in Tunisia today ‘hui (August 13) to help the country cope with their COVID-19 crisis.

The team includes nine doctors, nurses and logistics experts from the UK, France, Democratic Republic of Congo and Italy. Medical experts specialize in emergency medicine and infection, prevention and control, and humanitarian healthcare. They will provide clinical supervision and support to Tunisian health services and are expected to be deployed for up to twelve weeks.

COVID-19 infections in Tunisia are increasing rapidly and the health crisis is worsening the economic crisis in the country. As the number of new COVID-19 cases and deaths increased in Tunisia in July, hospitals and intensive care beds across the country became full or nearly reached their maximum capacity.

The UK-PHRST helps low- and middle-income countries investigate and respond to disease outbreaks, and conducts research to improve our response to future outbreaks. In this deployment, an Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) specialist from UK-PHRST will work alongside EMT staff, training healthcare professionals in IPC management.

UK Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, James Cleverly, said:

COVID-19 has taken a heavy toll on the Tunisian health system and economy, with the number of daily cases of serious concern.

This deployment of a British emergency medical team will provide British expertise to Tunisian healthcare professionals, helping them cope with the health crisis and save lives. “

Paul Ransom, UK acting EMT team leader and UK emergency service consultant, said:

As members of UK-Med and the UK Emergency Medical Team, we are proud to be in Tunisia to help the Tunisian people in their response to COVID-19.

We will help national teams provide hands-on patient care, provide specialized training and support our Tunisian colleagues in the demanding and vital work they do every day in the fight against COVID-19. “