Public health officials are warning the spread of Ebola in west Africa is outpacing efforts to contain the outbreak. The virus, now present in three capital cities, has killed at least 887 people so far. Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has described the 6-month outbreak as "out of co-ntrol" as a steadily increasing number of patients enter hospitals and overstretched health workers search remote areas for people who refuse to seek help. In response, the international community launched a US$100 million plan on Aug 1 to scale up efforts to stem the outbreak-the largest in history. It calls for the deployment of hundreds of additional doctors, nurses, and social mobilisers. At the same time, west African leaders have intensified their own efforts to control the outbreak by closing borders and quarantining some of the worst-affected areas.
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