A MICROBIOLOGIST from Basingstoke hospital has been awarded a medal for his bravery and efforts in tackling the Ebola crisis.

Stephen Kidd was one of 3,000 people to give up their time and expertise to travel from the UK to work in difficult conditions, and their effort has prevented people in the UK being affected by the disease, and contained the outbreak in West Africa.

The Ebola Medal is awarded by the UK government to military and civilian personnel who tackled Ebola.

Clinical scientist Stephen spent five weeks in January and February working in a laboratory operated by International Medical Corps in the town of Makeni in Sierra Leone, to help provide a quicker diagnosis for patients with Ebola.

He tested the blood taken from patients suspected of having Ebola or malaria, allowing doctors to diagnose those affected quickly so they could receive treatment.

The 36-year-old, who lives in Salisbury, said: “It was my first trip to Africa so it was quite daunting although we were very well prepared. But when we went out there it was at the height of the epidemic and it was very busy and hot, around 35 to 40 degrees celcius with 5am to 11pm shifts.”

Referring to the situation now, he said: “The cases of Ebola are very small and most centres are only maybe reporting one or two cases a week.”

Stephen returned to Sierra Leone yesterday and will spend four weeks helping the hospitals to get back on their feet following the aftermath of the epidemic.