Dr Tsion Firew is an Emergency Physician and Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, currently working at King Faisal Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda, as a co-director of Emergency Medicine Residency at the Africa Health Sciences University; she treated patients with Marburg virus disease and led the post-exposure prophylaxis programme during the Marburg virus disease outbreak in October, 2024; she previously worked in humanitarian response in Iraq, Haiti, Ethiopia, and New York City, USA, during the COVID-19 (March 2020–22) and mpox (2023) outbreaks. Dr Louise Mwiseneza is a consultant in internal medicine trained at the University of Rwanda; she had fellowship training in infectious diseases in Paris, France, at the Kremlin–Bicêtre University Hospital–Sorbonne University and she was awarded a university diploma in Therapeutic and Preventive Strategies in Infectious Pathologies–Sorbonne University; she currently works at the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali, Rwanda, and she is also a lecturer at the University of Rwanda College of Medicine and Health Sciences; she is one of the 24-h responders who were dispatched to set up the Marburg Virus Disease Treatment Center, Kigali, Rwanda, and receive the first patients. Malaika Asabwe is a critical care and trauma nurse who works at King Faisal Hospital with 17 years of experience in critical care; she provided care to patients infected with Marburg virus disease and led the administration of neutralising monoclonal antibodies (MBP091) infusion to patients infected with Marburg virus. Ineza Nadine Vanessa has been an emergency nurse for 17 years and she is Nurse Unit Manager of the Accident and Emergency department at King Faisal Hospital; she treated patients with Marburg virus disease and served as vaccine champion during this outbreak. Marie Henriette Uwintwari is a nurse in the Department of Internal Medicine at the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali and served in the acute medical admission unit during the COVID-19 pandemic; she acquired great expertise in timely isolation of patients infected with high-consequence pathogens and ensured provision of optimised supportive care for patients who were isolated. Dr Françoise Nizeyimana is a senior lecturer, consultant, and paediatric anaesthesiologist at the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali and Programme Director of Anesthesia and Critical Care Residency at the University of Rwanda; she is also a survivor of Marburg virus disease from the October, 2024, outbreak. Dr Doris Lorette Uwamahoro is an Emergency and Critical Care Physician at the University Teaching Hospital of Kigali; she is the Head of Department of the Accident and Emergency Medicine Department and Programme Director of the Emergency Medicine Residency at the University of Rwanda; she is also a survivor of Marburg virus disease from the October, 2024, outbreak. We declare no competing interests. The views and opinions expressed in this Correspondence are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views, decisions, or policies of the institutions with which the authors are affiliated. We would like to thank the leadership of the Ministry of Health of Rwanda and King Faisal Hospital, Kigali, Rwanda, for their tireless support and advocacy for health-care workers on the front line, and uplifting the voice of women health-care workers, including the Hon Minister Dr Sabin Nsanzimana, Hon Minister of State Dr Yvan Butera, and the Head of Department of Health Workforce Development, Dr Menelas Nkeshimana. We would also like to thank Dr Kara Neil for her support in developing this Correspondence and raising the voices of female health-care professionals on the front lines. Finally, we would like to especially thank the leadership of the Government of Rwanda for their swift response and protecting the health and wellbeing of its citizens.