Global Health Comparative Analysis Paper

We live in a country where all children go to school to gain an education and 25% of them will go onto receive some type of college degree. Compare this to low-income countries, in which children are 16 times as likely to die prior to their fifth birthday (Nickitas, Middaugh & Aries, 2016). Beyond the lens of our smartphones, Facebook friends and Nike sneakers is a world full of desperate people wishing to have enough food to eat for today. Many parts of the world lack sanitation, safe housing, sparse medical care and no medication. The global health issue are everyone’s problems not only for the sake of altruism but, with the increase in global travel for routine business and pleasure, dangerous pathogen are no longer confine by boarders. The Ebola outbreak four years ago, proved the necessity of a global solution to global health issues. The collaborative practice of several world health agencies and economically developed countries along with the use of volunteers, statistical updates, the latest literature and practices kept this outbreak mostly contained to its region of origin and the death toll to approximately 11,000 people (mainly in West Africa) (WHO,

Doctors, as well as medical researchers, have often stated that there exist similarities as well as difference between HIV Aids and Ebola. The most notable similarity is that the two are viral conditions. Consequently, they can be compared based on characteristics common to viral diseases. The two spread through contract with body fluids of infected persons. Ebola and HIV are incurable illnesses that result in widespread stigma. However, both differ greatly despite the fact that they are virally transmitted. Their emergence is traced to the African continent (Jin, 2015). If left untreated, they turn out to be fatal. Governmental authorities, as well as non-governmental institution, have made tremendous efforts in curbing the spread of these killer diseases all over the world.

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.

Since the epidemic started the CDC, WHO and other U.S. government agencies coordinated a uniform response to the affected areas to gain control over this horrific occurrence. During the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the CDC was organizing Ebola treatment centers in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). These designated hospitals were spread throughout the U.S. and began receiving patients, many whom were doctors, aid workers, missionaries and one reporter. These centers received specialized training, as well as dedicated areas for the infected individuals. As the Ebola became more evident throughout the United States, medical staff became more informed of the illness and specialized training was necessary for front-line staff. Even though community hospitals were not likely to have been affected by patients being transferred from Africa, they too were receiving additional Ebola training for this

The whole world is at edge knowing that Ebola is a very lethal virus and it is very tough to treat and cure an infected person. But it has been seen that in countries were level of development is higher and health care is easily reached this disease can be fought.

More active disease surveillance needs to occur. This means that health care workers should be encouraged to document and report those they think have been exposed and their contacts. In more effectively reporting suspected cases, Ebola response teams are better able to promptly follow-up, transfer to isolation centers, and assess the scope of the epidemic (Matua, Van der Wal, & Locsin,

What was usually a disease contained in regions of sub-Saharan Africa became a global worry. Although the outbreak started in Guinea, it quickly spread to two neighboring countries. From these three countries, cases were then transmitted to the United States, Spain, and the United Kingdom. No vaccine was available to stop the spread of Ebola. This deadly disease went from being a problem in only a small region of the world to being seen in three noncontiguous countries, which could have sowed the seeds of a pandemic had the cases not been contained. As a global community, we gain from our interactions with all citizens, but we must also be aware that we can also suffer from diseases that we think of as only affecting the “others.” If we do not help those “others,” we may become part of

Although Ebola caught the world’s attention during the 1995 outbreak in Zaire, the first outbreak occurred in 1976. As the chart below displays, 71% of the people infected died as a result of Ebola during this first outbreak (Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 56 (2): 247-270, 1978). With the current outbreak, this ratio has dramatically decreased as a result of scientific research leading to early detection, but the current infected population is more than 20 times the amount of any previous outbreak and this number continues to grow as no vaccine exists to prevent the disease.

Despite modest health improvements in the decade or so following the end of active conflict, the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic revealed ongoing systemic issues. The global involvement in the Mano River region countries, and particularly the role of the World Health

Ebola Virus disease (EVD) is a severe and often fatal illness in humans according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) (WHO, 2016). Although initially originating in wild animals it spreads through the human population via human to human transmission of bodily fluids with the average casualty rate being about 50% (WHO, 2016). The key to prevention and control of Ebola outbreaks is through community engagement, safe burials and good health centre prevention measures (WHO, 2015). Two countries will be examined one has experienced multiple cases of Ebola, Sierra Leone, and the other a few cases, the United States of America. The

Every illness begins at a single source that can rapidly spread to susceptible individuals who are completely unaware of what is occurring before them. This infection sparks a chain of events that can quickly transform a small illness into an epidemic. On March 25, 2014 the World Health Organization(WHO) announced the outbreak of a new strain of the Ebola virus disease with 86 suspected cases[15]. From this point onward, constant updates have been documented, and until the end of November 2014 the condition grew in number and prevalence[7]. With additional efforts and protocols instituted by organizations such as the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the virus began to fall until the present day. Fortunately, a pharmaceutical company

On March 23, the WHO’s Regional Office for Africa (AFRO) released the first Ebola report on the emergence of the disease in Guinea. At this time, the WHO sent teams into the field to manage and trace cases. It also notified WHO labs across Africa to prepare to diagnose cases. As the prevalence of Ebola grew, the WHO maintained contact with its regional offices in West Africa. AFRO’s regional director, Dr. Luis Sambo, called for greater epidemiological aid and implementation of the IHR’s alert system requirements. Between March and May of 2014, the WHO sent more than 100 experts to aid in the control of the outbreak. A cross border surveillance program began in June to limit the spread of the disease between the countries. During this time, the WHO continued meeting with government leaders in West Africa, AFRO representatives, and relevant organizations including the CDC and MSF. In June, MSF called for the WHO to increase its response. Margaret Chan, the Director-General of the WHO responded by upgrading the outbreak a Level 3 emergency. A Level 3 grade constitutes a greater WHO role in the outbreak, particularly through an increase in resources

Ebola virus disease (EVD) policies globally has become a confusing and ongoing investigation among world governments and leaderships. The first diagnosis in America confirmed and made public by the Centers if Disease Control (CDC), was in Texas on September 20, 2014. The patient had developed symptoms around the fourth day after coming into the United States (CDC 2014). The patient had stated he did not pose any symptoms when he left West Africa. Upon falling ill, he went to a Texas hospital, and based upon the signs and symptoms he was presenting, the hospital performed a laboratory test. The test confirmed he was in fact positive for the virus, but to found in critical condition. Texas Presbyterian Hospital isolated the patient and unfortunately, the patient died from complications of the virus on October 8, 2014. As stated by DR. Tom Frieda (2014), Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “We will contact anyone we think has any likelihood of having had contact with the patient when he was infectious, starting with relatives he had been staying with” (para 2). Health officials stated that once contacts were identified, they would be monitored for 21 days, which is the incubation period for the virus, for any signs and symptoms of the infection. At that point, the person would be put into quarantine themselves (CDC 2014). The public remained uneasy and questioned what was going to be done to stop the virus

Prevention of the Ebola virus is more useful than the treatments. Improving sanitation is an important thing to do in rural African countries. Any victims need to be isolated as soon as possible. Quarantining of infected people from others plays a major role. People who have been in close contact with the infected