Howcanwehelp beside donatingDoctorsWithoutBorders Red Cross or UNICEF? - what can we do?
Pope Francis praises ‘heroic’ responders to Ebola
Oct. 29,2014
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis has praised the “heroic” response by doctors, nurses and volunteers helping contain the Ebola epidemic and has urged renewed international efforts to defeat the virus.
Francis also asked for prayers for the victims during his Wednesday general audience, noting that Ebola is striking parts of Africa where some of the world’s most disadvantaged already live.
He said that he was gravely concerned about this “implacable illness” and was praying for those infected as well as those “who are heroically doing everything possible to care for our sick brothers and sisters.”
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Walk a Mile in My Shoes
LYRICS: Walk A Mile In My Shoes
Joe South and The Believers
Written by Joe South
Peaked at # 12 in 1970
Re-make 4 months later by Willie Hightower managed only # 107
If I could be you and you could be me for just one hour
If we could find a way to get inside each other's mind
If you could see you through my eyes instead of your ego
I believe you'd be surprised to see that you'd been blind
Walk a mile in my shoes, walk a mile in my shoes
Yeah, before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Walk a mile in my shoes
Well, your whole world you see around you is just a reflection
And the law of common says you're gonna reap just what you sow
So unless you've lived a life of total perfection
Mm-mm, you'd better be careful of every stone that you should throw
Yet we spend the day throwin' stones at one another
'cause I don't think or wear my hair same way you do
Well, I may be common people but I'm your brother
And when you strike out and try to hurt me it's a 'hurtin you,
Walk a mile in my shoes, walk a mile in my shoes
Yeah, before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Walk a mile in my shoes
There are people on reservations and out in the ghettos
And brother, there, but for the grace of God, go you and I
If I only had the wings of little angels don'tcha you know I'd fly
To the top of the mountain and then I'd cry?
Walk a mile in my shoes, walk a mile in my shoes
Hey, before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Better walk a mile in my shoes
Walk a mile in my shoes, walk a mile in my shoes
Oh, before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Walk a mile in my shoes,
Walk a mile in my shoes, walk a mile in my shoes
Hey, before you abuse, criticize and accuse
Walk a mile in my shoes
--------------------
We honour our troops- 4ever and 4 always
OUR CANADA- we mourn murder Canadian troops Patrice and Nathan- we love u so much and your families are our families- peace of Christ
Canada's Military- come on Canada let's get our troops over there.... let's fix this sheeet.
BLOGGED:
CANADA MILITARY NEWS- EBOLA GLOBAL NEWS Oct.28- Dr.s Without Borders-Pls Donate- Desiderata -Remember Haiti-Cholera- CHRISTIANS-AGED VOLUNTEERS OF THE WORLD-WE HAVE AN EBOLA CRISIS- our brothers and sisters of Africas need our help physically, mentally and financially... let's git r done.. EXAMPLE- BANDAGE INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION- check their volunteer work in Belize/Remember Haiti Cholera- pls don't repeat in the Africas and globally...When healing is done- WHO and UN need 2 give some answers on their humanitarian – our global well being..imho- let's git r done
http://nova0000scotia.blogspot.ca/2014/10/canada-military-news-ebola-global-news.html
Canadian Political Cartoonist- Chronicle Herald Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada
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· DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS- PLEASE HELP-DONATE
Outbreak
in West Africa
The Ebola epidemic currently sweeping through West Africa has
proven to be the most devastating single outbreak of the disease in history.
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has been working to
contain the outbreak since reports of its spread first appeared. However, the
organization has warned that it had reached
the limits of what its teams can do, and has called for a
coordinated international effort to help fight the epidemic.
Our staff are fighting to save the lives of hundreds of patients
and contain the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. But they can't operate
without donations - please help by making a donation today.
It is the financial
support of individuals like you that enables us to fight Ebola. Thank
you.
Oct. 25 Halifax walkathon to
raise funds for Ebola victims
MICHAEL LIGHTSTONE STAFF
REPORTER
Published October 5, 2014 -
5:59pm
West Africans and others in
Nova Scotia are preparing to raise money for the health and safety of people
facing the Ebola outbreak in Africa.
A walkathon is set for
Halifax on Oct. 25, an organizer said Saturday. Sizwe Adekayode of Fight Ebola
Nova Scotia said the fundraising event will be a walk five times around the
Halifax Commons.
Start time is 9 a.m., and
Adekayode said the walk will take place rain or shine.
He said money raised will go
to West Africa for such things as personal safety equipment and an orphanage in
Sierra Leone or Liberia, “because they are the two hardest-hit” countries
facing the Ebola crisis.
A sample pledge sheet said
Fight Ebola organizers “call on all Nova Scotians to support our effort as we
walk to contain this deadly disease.”
An expatriate from Sierra
Leone, Adekayode is a retired public servant who moved to Canada in 1964. He
said his group, which formed about two weeks ago, isn’t a registered charity
but is in negotiations with an organization in this region that is.
Asked how donors here can be
certain their contributions end up going to West Africans in need, Adekayode
acknowledged potential givers could be skeptical. He said Fight Ebola will keep
detailed records of money collected and sent to Africa.
“There’ll be regular updates
as to what we’re doing and where every last penny is going.”
The World Health
Organization said recently the Ebola virus’s spread shows no sign of easing
off.
More than 7,157 people have
been infected and 3,330 had died in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea as of
Sept. 28, according to media reports.
Humanitarian aid organizations
are in great need of help to combat the disease, which isn’t contagious until
symptoms begin. It spreads by close contact with an infected person’s body
fluids, public health experts have said.
Health officials in Texas
are dealing with one confirmed case of Ebola, in Dallas. There are no cases in
Canada.
Adekayode said a fundraising
event is being planned for the Shelburne-Birchtown area later this month, and
there could be more in the Maritimes.
“We’re moving with lightning
speed with this (fundraising) thing, because Ebola is also moving with
lightning speed,” Adekayode said. “This decision to do the walkathon was made
just six days ago.”
A report in the Globe and
Mail on Saturday, out of Monrovia, Liberia, said most aid agencies “are still reluctant
to enter the Ebola region.”
Fear, staffing issues and
other matters are contributing to this reticence, the report said.
Sheldon Yett, a UNICEF
representative in Liberia, told the Globe and Mail that too many humanitarian
groups are “sitting on the fence.”
A recent statement from WHO
said it wants to expedite the development of a vaccine for Ebola, work that
should take months instead of years. News reports have said two vaccines show
potential and are ready for testing.
-------------------
ASIAN- MUSLIM COUNTRIES
Ebola creating ‘atmosphere
of fear’ in shipping industry as coastguard steps in
Maritime and Coastguard
Agency monitoring vessels entering UK waters that have visited ports in west
Africa affected by virus
A sign warning of the
dangers of Ebola in Monrovia, Liberia, one of the countries worst affected by
the virus. Photograph: Stringer/Reuters
Ships entering UK waters
that have visited ports in west Africa affected by the Ebola virus are being
monitored by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, which is asking them to
provide details of the “health status” on board.
There have been claims of an
“atmosphere of fear” in the shipping industry, which has led to some seafarers
and shipowners refusing to call at those ports in Sierra Leone, Liberia and
Guinea at the centre of the medical emergency.
If there is any reason to
suspect someone on a vessel has the life-threatening disease, a ship in British
waters will be required to divert to a port designated by the marine
authorities, the MCA said in a circular sent to ports and their pilots.
There was also a warning
that the information about a vessel of interest affected by Ebola should only
be used and shared by individuals who have a genuine operational interest.
No seafarers are yet known
to have contracted the virus but the website of the London-based insurance
business Steamship Mutual reported in August that Ebola’s “virulence has
created an atmosphere of fear. There are examples of crews refusing to enter
ports in countries where outbreak of the disease has been reported.”
AP Moller-Maersk, the
world’s biggest liner operator, has said it is continuing to provide regular
services to the affected countries in west Africa but some other companies have
transferred vessels, and trade is down in Liberia by 30%.
Eva Maria Kops, Maersk
Line’s Liberia country manager, said some countries in Asia were refusing to
take cargoes from the affected areas. Some African nations have a blanket ban
on ships that have called at Monrovia in Liberia, Freetown in Sierra Leone or
Conakry in Guinea.
Kops said she thought many
people were badly overreacting to the outbreak: “I feel safe – absolutely. It
is important to state that it is not easy to contract Ebola. There has to be
physical contact, while alcohol and chlorine kill the virus.”
But she said her company was
doing its best to keep crews healthy. Unnecessary contact with port officials
was avoided and there were more limited security inspections of the vessels by
shoreside authorities.
“We have four ships working
there and the crews are kept up to date and know how to handle the situation.
They wear full suits across the whole body, shoe covers and masks as long as
shoreside people are on board. There is no shaking of hands between the two
sides as there used to be.”
--------------
Oct. 25 Halifax walkathon to
raise funds for Ebola victims
MICHAEL LIGHTSTONE STAFF
REPORTER
Published October 5, 2014 -
5:59pm
West Africans and others in
Nova Scotia are preparing to raise money for the health and safety of people
facing the Ebola outbreak in Africa.
A walkathon is set for
Halifax on Oct. 25, an organizer said Saturday. Sizwe Adekayode of Fight Ebola
Nova Scotia said the fundraising event will be a walk five times around the
Halifax Commons.
Start time is 9 a.m., and
Adekayode said the walk will take place rain or shine.
He said money raised will go
to West Africa for such things as personal safety equipment and an orphanage in
Sierra Leone or Liberia, “because they are the two hardest-hit” countries
facing the Ebola crisis.
A sample pledge sheet said
Fight Ebola organizers “call on all Nova Scotians to support our effort as we
walk to contain this deadly disease.”
An expatriate from Sierra
Leone, Adekayode is a retired public servant who moved to Canada in 1964. He
said his group, which formed about two weeks ago, isn’t a registered charity
but is in negotiations with an organization in this region that is.
Asked how donors here can be
certain their contributions end up going to West Africans in need, Adekayode
acknowledged potential givers could be skeptical. He said Fight Ebola will keep
detailed records of money collected and sent to Africa.
“There’ll be regular updates
as to what we’re doing and where every last penny is going.”
The World Health
Organization said recently the Ebola virus’s spread shows no sign of easing
off.
More than 7,157 people have
been infected and 3,330 had died in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea as of
Sept. 28, according to media reports.
Humanitarian aid
organizations are in great need of help to combat the disease, which isn’t
contagious until symptoms begin. It spreads by close contact with an infected
person’s body fluids, public health experts have said.
Health officials in Texas
are dealing with one confirmed case of Ebola, in Dallas. There are no cases in
Canada.
Adekayode said a fundraising
event is being planned for the Shelburne-Birchtown area later this month, and
there could be more in the Maritimes.
“We’re moving with lightning
speed with this (fundraising) thing, because Ebola is also moving with
lightning speed,” Adekayode said. “This decision to do the walkathon was made
just six days ago.”
A report in the Globe and
Mail on Saturday, out of Monrovia, Liberia, said most aid agencies “are still
reluctant to enter the Ebola region.”
Fear, staffing issues and
other matters are contributing to this reticence, the report said.
Sheldon Yett, a UNICEF
representative in Liberia, told the Globe and Mail that too many humanitarian
groups are “sitting on the fence.”
A recent statement from WHO
said it wants to expedite the development of a vaccine for Ebola, work that
should take months instead of years. News reports have said two vaccines show
potential and are ready for testing.
-------------------
-------------
www.thecoastguard.ca/News/Local/2014...walk...Ebola%0D%0A/1
o
Oct
20, 2014 - ... As the Ebola virus continues to spread overseas, Nova
Scotians are ... Choose the newspaper of your city or
region Cancel ... The World Health Organization has reported
the death toll in West Africa as 4500 and rising. The Black Loyalist Heritage
Society will be holding a Fight Ebola Walk-A-Thon on Oct.
-----------------
West Africa: Ebola in Africa
- Glowing Successes, Daunting Challenges
By Susan
Mboya-Kidero
West
Africa is dealing with the worst Ebola outbreak in history. The latest figures
show there have been 4,877 confirmed or suspected deaths in the worst-affected
West African nations of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Eight deaths are
linked to the hemorrhagic fever in Nigeria, and one in the United States. In
total, there have been over 8,900 confirmed or suspected cases, mostly in West
Africa.
The
World Health Organisation (WHO) says that while the Ebola strain in West Africa
is not the deadliest on record, it is by a large margin the most widespread
outbreak to date. The Organisation has confirmed that up to 70pc of patients
who contract Ebola are dying - and ultimately more than 1.4 million people
could be infected by 2015, if the disease progresses unchecked.
There
has been an unprecedented response to the Ebola outbreak - worldwide
governments, relief organisations and NGOs are doing everything they can to
help prevent the virus from spreading by treating patients and providing
support to healthcare staff who, at huge risk to themselves, care for those who
are infected.
The
global response, while initially slow, is accelerating to the point needed to
begin to slow this epidemic. Once the disease slows, and more aid comes in, I
believe that it can be controlled. But the global response must continue to
accelerate.
The
sheer size of this outbreak means that containing the disease is a continuously
moving target, and the world needs to work harder to get ahead of it. The Ebola
outbreak is growing exponentially, with over 1,000 new infections a week.
In
Sierra Leone, the government recently recorded 141 deaths in a single day. WHO
estimates that by December, we may be seeing upwards of 10,000 new cases each
week. Clearly more resources will be required to contain it.
The
outbreak, which was first detected in March this year, is a humanitarian crisis
with far reaching social, health, ethical and economic implications for Sierra
Leone, Guinea and Liberia - the hardest hit nations in West Africa.
Governments
and economists are estimating that this outbreak will have a tremendous
economic impact and pose a significant economic threat to the three affected
countries and even beyond.
The
World Bank (WB) estimates that Ebola could cost West Africa 32 billion dollars
over the next year and that economic growth next year could be reduced by 2.3pc
in Guinea and 8.9pc points in Sierra Leone. In Liberia, which has been the
hardest hit country, the economy could lose up to 11.7pc in growth next year.
These are extremely worrying statistics.
Africa
as a whole is seeing a reduction in tourism, as nervous travelers choose to
avoid the region.
In
West Africa, the outbreak is having a direct impact on productivity, due to
isolation and quarantine measures, as well as fears of infection. The result is
a slowing of regular economic activity and cross border trade. As well,
governments are having to stretch their already limited resources to provide
additional funding to shore up their weak health systems, to provide treatment,
and to isolate suspected new cases, and also to fund specialised burial teams
to go out into the communities to bury Ebola victims.
Governments
are also having to undertake and fund labour-intensive contact tracing
processes to track people who had close contact with infected individuals. This
is turning out to be a difficult task - CNN reports that in Sierra Leone only
20pc to 30pc of available addresses can be tracked.
According
to the United Nations, only 16 of 44 zones in West Africa have sufficient
contact tracing. The inability to trace everyone who has had contact with an
Ebola patient is cited as one of the main reasons why the disease is spiralling
out of control.
The
Ebola crisis is also putting the spotlight on the readiness of African
countries to deal with serious health threats such as Ebola. Many African
countries have a mixed scorecard when it comes to readiness to deal with a
potential outbreak. Being prepared for an outbreak is so critical to quickly
arrest and prevent the disease from spreading.
An
outbreak of this magnitude and complexity would be a challenge for any country
to manage - even for the most advanced healthcare systems as we are seeing in
the US, where despite having top notch facilities, two nurses have been
infected while caring for an Ebola patient.
However,
Africa has been particularly hard hit. Weaknesses exist in relatively new
health systems in countries which were only beginning to stabilise after years
of civil war. Keep in mind that many countries have stretched resources and as
a result of competing priorities healthcare is unfortunately left behind.
In
Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea there are only one to two doctors available
per 100,000 people and these doctors are concentrated in urban areas. Add to
this the fact that a large number of fatalities are among healthcare workers -
more than 200 health workers have died of Ebola this far. Sierra Leone has lost
some of its top Ebola specialists to the disease, which only compounds the
crisis.
The
WHO reports that in order to avoid the "doomsday scenario" and turn
the tide on this outbreak, up to 70pc of those infected will need to be
isolated and in treatment by the end of the year. Only then will we begin to
see a reduction in the number of cases.
However,
despite the strong global response, we are still far from being able to achieve
that goal. The reality is that currently only 18pc of those infected are
isolated in treatment centres, leaving more than 80pc of infected Ebola victims
being treated at home by family and friends who are then also at risk of
catching the disease.
In
recent weeks, however, aid organisations have begun to distribute home care
kits containing personal protective equipment to enable caregivers in the home
to protect themselves while caring for a loved one with Ebola. This, along with
a rapid increase in the number of beds available in isolation wards, will be
our best chance of containing this outbreak.
But
even as we discuss the seriousness of this situation, I believe that it is
important to highlight the success stories of where Ebola has been contained,
and learn from those countries who have been able to successfully stop the
spread of Ebola.
According
to the Centres of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Ebola in Nigeria has
been virtually contained as a result of that country's rapid response and
excellent contact tracing system. The Nigerian Ebola response was a coordinated
effort by Nigeria's Emergency Operations Centre, including government and
healthcare workers, and international partners, including the CDC. Nigeria
remains vigilant, but their successful response to a single case of Ebola shows
that with the right systems in place, it is possible to rapidly contain the
disease.
Senegal's
preparedness and prompt cross-border communication meant that this country
avoided an Ebola epidemic entirely, after confirming and successfully treating
its first case in August.
Ebola
presents a number of social dilemmas rarely seen before. West Africa is
struggling with fear and stigma around Ebola, a natural human reaction to any
disease, particularly one that is highly infectious and has no known cure.
The
psychosocial ramifications of an Ebola death in a family are far-reaching and
complex. The fear of stigmatization is having the unintended consequence of
driving Ebola sufferers underground, and people claiming that an Ebola death
was due to some other cause, putting the entire community in danger.
Given
that the most virulent stage of the disease is immediately before and
immediately after death when the viral load is at its highest, if a community
believes that a person did not die of Ebola, they may be encouraged to continue
with their normal burial rituals which involve touching and bathing a corpse.
This has tragic consequences.
The
impact of Ebola on orphans is particularly devastating. According to UNICEF, at
least 3,700 children in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone have lost one or both
parents to Ebola since the start of the outbreak.
In
Liberia alone, almost 2 000 children are known to have lost their parents in
the outbreak. The impact is doubly hard on these children. Not only do they
lose their parents, their extended families and communities reject them out of
fear of the disease.
In
Guinea, aid workers are focussed on preventing widespread panic by providing
life-saving information to communities so that they can have a better
understanding of the disease and of how to best protect themselves and their
families.
The
crisis also presents one of the most difficult ethical dilemmas that we as an
African community could ever face. We all know that Ebola can spread very
quickly once it enters a country, and that the first line of defence is our
borders.
The
Ebola crisis also presents African leaders with one of the most difficult
ethical dilemmas possible. Cross border trade and air travel has been one of
the primary mechanisms of spreading of the disease across borders, and so a
logical first step for any country is to close its borders to protect its
citizens.
However,
doing this may deny fellow African countries desperately needed aid in their
hour of greatest need. Leaders have to grapple with the dilemma of protecting
their own citizens without causing undue harm to neighbouring African countries
that desperately need aid. In some instances, aid corridors are being set up
where flights containing much needed health care and food supplies are allowed
in to the affected countries at controlled intervals.
The
speed and the ferocity of this particular outbreak have taught us of the need
to be prepared. As a global community, and Africa in particular, we should
learn from this outbreak to emerge stronger and more able to cope with such
health crises. Nigeria's success in quickly containing Ebola once it entered
its borders came out of a stained, and well-coordinated multiagency effort.
The
Government created an Emergency Operations Center to coordinate and oversee the
national response. Schools were immediately closed, and large gatherings
prohibited. Educational information was made available to the public.
A
presidential decree enabled officials to access mobile phone records and
empowered them to lean on law-enforcement agencies where necessary to track
down people at risk. Thereafter, a strict system to monitor potential cases was
put in place by the Lagos state government.
The
operations center used a variety of resources, including phone records and
flight manifests, to track down nearly 900 people who might have been exposed
to the virus and each contact was monitored for symptoms for 21 days. During
this contact tracing process, officials made a staggering 18,500 face-to-face
visits. It is this unprecedented response that enabled Nigeria to avoid what
would unquestionably have been a disaster for the country and the continent.
Africa's
medical resources are still very much focused on treatment, which is usually
the most urgent need. But this unfolding crisis has taught us that we need to
invest more in prevention and building health systems that enable us to cope
with any eventuality.
This
is why healthcare has always been an area of strategic focus for The Coca-Cola
Africa Foundation (TCCAF). In fact, initially the foundation came about as a
response to the HIV/AIDS crisis in Africa.
But
recently TCCAF decided to switch its focus from healthcare and prevention to
health systems strengthening. We are providing resources to help strengthen
health systems in affected countries to make it easier for them to fight and
bring such issues under control.
The
Foundation is using Coca-Cola's advanced logistics systems and expertise to
help strengthen health systems in Africa, and our Project Last Mile initiative
is an example of how we are leveraging our internal expertise in supply chains
to help the Medical Supply Department (MSD) in Tanzania to optimize procurement
of key medicines and to reduce out of stock risks.
I
truly admire those who continue to risk their lives every day to help bring
this humanitarian crisis to an end. The exceptional global response to the
Ebola crisis shows that we have not lost our humanity. Sierra Leone, Guinea and
Liberia cannot overcome this crisis alone and it will take a concerted global
effort to bring this epidemic under control.
The
African community and the rest of the globe has to come together to offer those
on the frontlines of this battle all the support and resources they need. I
believe that there is hope - the outbreak can be brought under control with the
right equipment and sufficient resources. The world can win this battle.
Susan
Mboya-Kidero (PhD) Is President of the Cola-Cola Africa Foundation.
--------------
--------------
www.scmp.com/.../asia/.../asian-countries-worry-about-ability-cope-ebol...
·
20
hours ago - Governments are ramping up response plans, but health experts in the
region's less developed countries fear any outbreak would be
hard to ...
news.yahoo.com/uk-holds-emergency-talks-growing-ebola-threat-08470...
·
Jul 31, 2014 - From Yahoo News: Fears that
the west African Ebola outbreak could spread to other
continents grew with European and Asian countries on ...
AFRICAN NATIONS-
Soccer is now a conduit for
Ebola fears in Africa
Brian Browdie October 21,
2014
The outbreak of Ebola in
West Africa is impeding efforts to find a host for the continent’s
biennial soccer championship.
South Africa on Monday became the latest
country to pass on hosting the Africa Cup of Nations next January, because of
fears that fans from countries devastated by Ebola will follow their teams
to the tournament.
“We do not have a ready-made
abundance of resources to be shifted to Afcon,” sports minister Fikile Mbalula
told reporters. “We will share the responsibility to fight Ebola—we are not
immune to that.”
The Confederation of African Football, an alliance of 16
nations that conducts the championship, has been sounding out members about
hosting the gathering after Morocco threatened
to withdraw, citing Ebola fears.
In
September, the confederation barred Liberia, Sierra Leone and
Guinea from hosting international matches. The three nations have been hit hard
by the virus, which has caused more than 4,500 deaths worldwide.
Morocco reportedly has asked the federation to postpone
the tournament, which is slated to start in January and run for three
weeks. A pullout would earn Morocco a suspension and other sanctions.
Besides South Africa, the confederation reportedly has approached
Ghana and Egypt about hosting. Tournament officials are slated to meet on
November 2 to resolve the standoff.
Nigeria
on Monday said it might be willing to host the tournament despite Ebola fears.
“I think we’re interested,” Seyi Adewunmi, first vice president of the Nigerian
Football Federation, reportedly told Goal.com.
On Monday, the World Health
Organization declared Nigeria to be free of Ebola after the country went 42 days
without any new cases.
----
Ebola plus fear equals Conster-nation.
(ThyBlackMan.com) Consternation
is a noun – and is defined as “feelings of anxiety or dismay, typically at
something unexpected.” Synonyms of consternation include distress,
discomposure, and panic. Consternation aptly describes what most Americans are
feeling right now about the Ebola virus outbreak – especially at the news of
two American healthcare workers in Dallas contracting the disease. The
aftermath of these developments has brought about a barrage of conspiracy
theories, xenophobia, and a wave of isolationist thinking. It’s knee-jerk
reaction theater, folks. Our great nation has recently become conster-nation.
The United
States of America is, has been, and will continue to be a nation of immigrants.
Very few people in leadership want to think about that, speak about that, or
acknowledge that in the present tense. Too many of our elected officials are
too busy promoting dog-eat-dog mindsets, declaring that our borders must be
sealed off, and spreading the pseudo-gospel that everyone is on their own.
These notions are childish, and offer nothing in the way of a meaningful
response to a legitimate healthcare crisis.
The ebola
viral disease (EVD) was discovered in 1976. According to the renowned Mayo
Clinic, Ebola virus and Marburg virus are related viruses/filoviruses that
cause hemorrhagic fevers — illnesses marked by severe bleeding (hemorrhage),
organ failure and, in many cases, death. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC)
cite these symptoms of ebola: fever (higher than 101.5°F), severe headache,
muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and unexplained
hemorrhage (bleeding or bruising) from the orifices of the body. Symptoms may
appear anywhere from 2 to 21 days after exposure to Ebola, but the average is 8
to 10 days. Since its discovery, outbreaks of EVD have occurred only in its
indigenous region – West Africa.
Outbreak-themed
movies and 24-hour news cycles have helped perpetuate a collective sense of
gloom-and-doom.
On planet
earth, there are only three nations currently dealing with rampant outbreaks of
the ebola virus: Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
It should be noted that in those three countries, there is only one doctor for
every 100,000 residents. Think about that. We have more physicians at Archbold
Hospital than the entire country of Liberia – which has a population of nearly
4,500,000 people. Hospitals in West Africa are few and accessible only by foot
or motorcycle. Ambulances are reserved only for pregnant women there.
To stop the
ebola virus, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and the Democratic Republic of Congo don’t
require American soldiers or guns or weapons. Those countries require funding.
Those countries need medications, gloves, protective suits, and facemasks. To
effectively deal with EVD, the nations of the world need to do one of two
things: [1] jointly provide those West Africa countries the money they need to
acquire these things, or [2] jointly provide those West Africa countries with
all the medical supplies they so desperately need.
As
President Obama stated a few days ago: “I am absolutely confident that we can
prevent a serious outbreak in the United States… it is very important for us to
understand that the investment we make in dealing with this problem is an
investment in our public health. It is not simply charity. It is probably the
single most important thing we can do to prevent [an outbreak in America] is to
confront a raging epidemic in Africa.”
Shepard
Smith of the Fox News Channel said this about the weeping and gnashing of teeth
in America over ebola: “You have to remember that there is politics in the mix.
With mid-term elections coming, the party in charge has to appear to be
effectively leading. The party out of power needs to show that there is a lack
of leadership. These are the facts. We do not have an outbreak of Ebola in the
United States, nowhere. We do have two healthcare workers who contracted the
disease from a dying man – they are isolated. There is no information to
suggest that the virus has spread to anyone in the general population in
America.
Suggestions
have been made publicly that leaders and medical professionals may be lying to
us. Those suggestions are completely without basis in fact. There is no
evidence of any kind, of which we at Fox News are aware, that leaders have lied
about anything regarding Ebola… being afraid at all is the wrong thing to do.
The panic that has tanked the stock market and left people fearful that their
children will get sick at school is counterproductive and lacks basis in fact
or reason. There is no Ebola spreading in America. Should that change our
reporting will change. But there is nothing to indicate that it will.” Well
said, Mr. Smith. Quite fair, quite balanced.
Travel bans
would increase the spread of ebola, not contain it.
Ebola is
not a weapon. Its victims are not villains. We should replace our consternation
with compassion.
Staff
Writer; Arthur L.
Jones, III
This
talented brother is a local Minister, weekly featured Democratic Op-Ed columnist, non-profit advisor, and sees the
Braves winning it all this fall. Rev. Jones welcomes your comments! Please
email him directly at:tcdppress@gmail.com.
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Sep
25, 2014 - Read 'UN calls for $1.1B to ramp up Ebola response
as Canada ... to fight the Ebola virus
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