Despite the issues in Northland, it remains a privileged society when compared with those countries battling to eradicate the Ebola virus.
Northland Medical Officer Clair Mills is heading to West Africa to lead an organisation working to eradicate the killer disease.
According to Clair Mills, “The best way to stop this epidemic spreading is to stop it in West Africa. I think both as a community and a government here, we should be doing more to do that.”
“Similar reasons drive me to work there as they do here in Te Tai Tokerau, there are huge inequities globally.”
Clair has done similar work in Africa, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea and Holland and has been appointed by the group ‘Doctors Without Borders' as the medical co-ordinator for all their work in Sierra Leone.
Clair has three months leave from her position as Northland's Medical Officer of Health to pursue this work.
She isn't overly concerned about contracting the Ebola virus, saying that if she follows the protocols already set out by her organisation to deal with Ebola, she will return home fit and well.