ABSTRACT
The outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in West Africa has been unprecedented in scale and impact. Reflecting back on the Ebola experience in West Africa, recovering from the outbreak required national authorities to drive the safe reactivation of essential health services—such as maternity services and routine immunizations—within the context of ongoing response activities. Developments in quality improvement during the recovery phase need to be considered within a wider context of national health policy and planning. The role and importance of universal health coverage (UHC) becomes critical here. Each of the Ebola-affected countries has a clearly articulated vision for UHC. Essential public health functions (EPHF) is a concept used to describe the core set of activities that a government should have in place to create a comprehensive public health system that protects and promotes the health of their population. Quality improvement endeavors within Ebola-affected countries are just now starting to take shape.
