Ebola Virus Report

In late 2013, Ebola virus disease (EVD), a deadly and lethal disease, remerged in West Africa spreading to various countries in the region. In humans, the disease is spread through contact with infected bodily fluids leading to haemorrhagic fever (World Health Organization [WHO], 2015). Originating in 1976 in equatorial Africa, past outbreaks with a few hundred cases had been contained within rural, forested areas in Uganda and Congo (Piot, 2012). In 2014, a total of 20, 206 cases and 7,905 deaths were reported to have occurred in up to eight countries worldwide. Of all cases and deaths resulting from the disease, 99.8% occurred in three neighbouring West African countries - Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea (WHO, 2014). With a case fatality rate from about 50% to 90%, and the absence of preventative or curative therapies, the Ebola epidemic has led to overall global alarm and further elucidated existing global health disparities that perpetuated the epidemic with these West African countries.

In 2014 the United States was hit with a force far more deadly and dangerous than many threats received. The ebola virus took the world by storm after it was carried to the United States and spread by people who had visited West Africa. This virus was all the more deadly as it often took hours for any symptoms to occur. In this time the Center for Disease Control spent much time and many resources looking for answers to the many questions they had. Under the time constraint and scrutinizing public, they had to determine what ebola was, what it did and its effects on the general public.

In 2014 there was an Ebola outbreak in Africa, which spread to the USA, making our entire nation fearful because it is a fatal and deadly virus if left untreated. Ebola, also know as hemorrhagic fever, is caused by ebolavirus. It is spread though direct contact with bodily fluids, which includes droplets of fluid. Symptoms include muscle pains, fever, vomiting, and diarrhea internal\external bleeding leading to death. Unfortunately, there is no current vaccine but early treatment and interventions improves chances of survival. Ebola is not only affecting the safety of USA airlines but also affecting healthcare workers especially nurses who have the most direct contact with Ebola patients. This subject brought to my attention the question:

On September 1, 1976, another, even more deadly, outbreak of Ebola struck - this time in Zaire. The first victim of this outbreak was a 44-year-old teacher who had just returned from a tour of northern Zaire. After suffering from symptoms that seemed like malaria, this first victim went to the Yambuku Mission Hospital and received a shot of an anti-malarial drug. Unfortunately, at that time the hospital did not use disposable needles nor did they properly sterilize the ones they used. Thus, the Ebola virus spread through used needles to many of the hospital

The Ebola epidemic is a viral disease that spreads very quickly and has high mortality rate. The outbreak is actually an international disaster at the moment and has created a lot of tension worldwide (Spark, 2015). Presently the epidemic is ongoing in most of West Africa countries with Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea being the most badly hit. The epidemic has been reported in Nigeria, Mali, United States, Senegal and Spain too (World Bank, 2015). However, the epidemic has been maintained in most of the countries except in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea where Ebola is yet to be controlled. It is worth noting that other countries especially African countries are at a high risk of reporting cases of Ebola making governments from all parts of the world to remain alert (The World Bank, 2014).

Governments, WHO, and the international community have a collective responsibility not only to fully staff the effort to bring Ebola under control, but also to provide adequate protective clothing, training, and support for anyone coming into contact with patients.” (Lancet) This opinion is prevalent throughout medical health care providers. Two nurses who treated Duncan at the Dallas hospital have already contracted this dreaded disease. These nurses have been transferred from the local hospital in Dallas to hospitals that have isolation units, and staff trained in dealing with very contagious infections. One nurse went to Emory University Hospital, and the other flew to the National Institutes of

The Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) has spread across several West African countries, adding a significant medical and financial burden to their healthcare systems and economies. The virus has the potential to spread and efforts to halt its progression are challenged by already struggling economies and healthcare systems. The EVD epidemic started in resource-constrained settings and caused thousands of fatalities. However, given population mobility, international travel and an increasingly globalized economy, the recent EVD epidemic has the potential to reoccur and evolve into a global pandemic [1]. Struggling health systems in West African countries pose a significant challenge to contain future EVD epidemics and to reduce its causes and effects.

This Ebola outbreak first began the jungles of West Africa and has spread throughout several countries in the area, but not the U.S. This is because of many factors, including traditional medical practices in Africa, lack of technology in many African areas, and access to advanced medical facilities in the U.S. The most significant of these is Africa’s lack of highly technological medical care.

The fatal Ebola virus is threatening the lives of West African people. The virus is communicable, able to spread in different ways according to the development and severity. At the low risk point of the virus, Ebola travels through bodily fluids. When evolved, there is a possibility to become air born. Monkeys, pigs, or fruit bats infected with the virus that come in contact with humans start the spreading. There are many health workers being sent to West Africa to teach the people of Liberia’s Foya District, Sierra Leone, and Guinea how to prevent further spreading of Ebola. In addition, isolation units are being built in these locations as an attempt to prevent further spreading of this deadly virus.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014c). Guidance on Personal Protective Equipment To Be Used by Healthcare Workers During Management of Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in U.S. Hospitals, Including Procedures for Putting On (Donning) and Removing (Doffing). Retrieved November 27, 2014, from http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/procedures-for-ppe.html

In addition, handling “bushmeat” can cause Ebola to be transmitted. Bushmeat is known as the killing of an animal to be soon digested for nourishment purposes (1). Furthermore, humans are not the only ones susceptible to the virus, as this virus has killed primates. For example, the strain Ebola Reston has caused many deaths in primates, yet it has no effect on the human being (1). Many transmissions have occurred from healthcare workers not using personal protective equipment and having direct contact with the patient. Many ways to prevent the spreading of the EVD is to have a proper burial of the infected patient, maintaining a clean environment, and dividing the infected hosts that contain Ebola from the other patients. The main symptom and most common symptom from Ebola is the hemorrhagic fever/rash. A hemorrhagic fever/rash is where a particular spot on the human skin has its blood vessels bleeding looking like little red dots. This symptom may give off a hint to the physician for many diseases, one being

In 2014, an outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease occurred in a number of West African countries, with most cases confined to Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone. The highly contagious disease, spread via contact with infected body fluid, including mucus, saliva, tears, sweat, breast milk, and semen, infected more than 28,000 people. Although generally contained, the effects of the epidemic were felt both directly and indirectly in the United States and many other developed countries due to the limited education on Ebola. Since October 2014, the African epidemic has been abated, and global efforts have shifted from crisis response to development of preventative strategies. In the United States, researchers, clinicians, and other decision makers focus

The hard hit nations have inadequate capacities to detect, treat and slow down the transmission of EVD. The outbreak consequently overwhelmed governments and health systems that were already inundated. Feeble health systems and a seeming void in effective global health governance resulted into an unprecedented EVD outbreak. To help stop Ebola and contain the situation in those affected countries reflects positively on the donor countries as well. The U.S for one would not just be assisting the nationals of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone but also its own citizens by preventing a possible spread that could be very well associated with exponentially higher costs and health consequences. Currently, the US has no billing or ICD-9 diagnosis code for Ebola13, hampering the ability of health facilities and personnel to comply for ‘Ebola protocols’. Gerard Anderson, a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg school of Public health estimates average bills of $18,000 to $24,000 daily including intensive care costs plus costs of losing revenue by isolating patients14. It is additionally not clear whether insurance can or is willing to pay for extras associated with treatment, for instance protective (hazmat) suits,

The recent outbreak of Ebola has promoted international involvement from many organizations and governments. Most of these efforts have been focused on short-term solutions to control the disease. However, while many organizations provided medical workers, aid, and supplies to combat Ebola, their actions were insufficient to stop the spread of disease. There remains a multitude of problems in Sub-Saharan Africa, including lack of locally trained medical professionals and poor coordination between global health organizations and governments. Ultimately, these issues must be addressed in order to stop the spread of Ebola as well as other infectious diseases.

There is no doubt that some of the most feared organisms on this planet are invisible to the human eye. People are both fearful and fascinated by how such tiny microorganisms, such as viruses, can cause the decimation of whole populations of both humans and various animals. At the current moment, the worst outbreak of the Ebola virus that has ever happened is occurring in West Africa. This disease is so frightening because it can quickly result in a terrible, agonizing death of any unfortunate soul that has become infected. This specific virus can quite literally cause the liquefaction of the organs within the human body. As Ebola takes hold of many villages and towns in West Africa, surrounding countries are scrambling to send supplies and aid workers in an attempt to stop the spread of such a lethal virus. The Ebola virus first made its way to the United States this past October, sending many U.S. citizens in to a state of hysteria out of fear that an Ebola epidemic will occur on American soil. As the death toll of the recent outbreak keeps rising steadily, only time will tell if the virus can be stopped in its track before spreading across the globe to infect inhabitants in all corners of the world.