How should we react to the Ebola epidemic?
In the Opinion piece “In the Face of Ebola, Stay Calm,” Anna Altman writes:
Back in August, at least six months into the largest outbreak of Ebola on record, Dr. Facely Diawara, who heads the Red Cross Society effort to control and treat the disease in Guinea, told the Christian Science Monitor, “Panic is our worst enemy.”
Dr. Diawara’s words came less than three weeks before a lockdown in Monrovia, Liberia, ignited panic and violence. West Point, a particularly hard-struck neighborhood there, was cordoned off with barbed wire. Several young men tried to storm the barriers and were met with live fire. Shakie Kamara, a boy of 15, was shot in the legs. Because of fear that the boy might be infected with Ebola and that his blood might transmit infection, bystanders did nothing to help him. Mr. Kamara died of blood and fluid loss several hours later. This, you might say, is what hysteria has wrought.
A man in Dallas was recently found to have Ebola, and authorities have sought to isolate as many as 100 people that may have had contact with him. To be sure, there is a lot that needs to be done to stem the spread of the disease — government oversight, preparing health workers, educating the public about symptoms and keeping isolated those who are potentially sick — but there is also the question of whether, and how much, hysteria and panic will hinder, or help, these efforts.
Students: Read the entire article, then answer TWO of the following questions …
After you answer TWO questions respond to at least THREE other responses.
— How should we react to the Ebola epidemic? What have been your personal reactions to news about the virus?
— Do you think our primary concern should be assisting the three West African nations who are currently battling the epidemic? Is the world doing enough to help? Why?
— Do you think authorities are taking the right precautions to prevent Ebola from spreading in the U.S.? For example, should we prioritize airport fever screening or step up hospital preparations?
— Are you hopeful that the world will find a vaccine or a cure to stop the spread of Ebola? Or, that researchers will find an effective treatment to the virus?
— Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University, stated that the U.S. has “a much larger outbreak of anxiety than we have of Ebola.” Do you feel anxious? Have you noticed any signs of anxiety about Ebola in your community? How can anxiety in this situation be helpful? How can it be harmful?