Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Ebola On The Move

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a blog about the Ebola outbreak in West Africa as well as a documented case in America.  The first reported case of Ebola saw its host die due to complications from the infection.  There has been a large amount of support from American doctors and health care providers traveling to West Africa to help relieve the symptoms of the infected people.  The thought behind traveling to go help people is a great gesture and shows great humanity in the people that are going however the long distance traveling and interacting with Ebola infected patients could be helping the spread of the disease.  The first reported case of Ebola has recently been reported in New York City.(Ebola in NYC )   As many people know, NYC has one of the heaviest population densities in the western hemisphere.  The first reported case came from a doctor that had recently returned from helping the sick people in West Africa.  This is an issue that could see much more media coverage in the coming weeks and it has a valid reason to be covered.

Like many infectious diseases, with good hygiene and proper precautions, the disease can be contained at an efficient level.  We know that the time before someone shows symptoms of Ebola can take up to 21 days yet we still neglect to hold people in quarantine for at least that amount of time.  The fact that this doctor that was infected was in NYC riding the subway and interacting with thousands of people on the streets is frightening in that one simple case of Ebola could blossom into a thousand cases within a months time.  I do agree that many people are over reacting to the Ebola outbreak in thinking that they have as much of a chance to contract Ebola as the common cold however the people in charge of the safety of the country are taking it too lightly.  The fact that cases of Ebola popping up on totally different sides of America shows that a more strict quarantine system must be implemented immediately or else our hospitals will soon be over-run with Ebola infected people and our streets will be filled with a population full of fear for the safety of themselves and their families.  Ebola in NYC

Related Articles:


  1. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/23/ebola-in-nyc-the-answer-will-be-here-in-12-hours/17786777/
  2. http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/ebola-virus-outbreak/doctor-tests-positive-ebola-new-york-city-n232801
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2 comments:

  1. Fred KNovember 6, 2014 at 4:14 PM

    I find it terrifying that it is not mandatory for anyone returning from west Africato be quarantined for 21 days. I agree with you in that it is putting alot of people at unnecessary risk. I think stricter procedures regarding exposure to this disease should be implemented in the future.

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  2. Keri PhillipsNovember 10, 2014 at 12:02 AM

    My opinion may be unpopular, but I do not believe we should be placing people coming from West Africa in quarantine. If you had taken the right precautions (as all health physicians should) than a quarantine is, in my opinion, extreme, not necessary, and potentially a violation of basic human rights. I think before people come back they should be checked for the virus before returning, and shouldn't wait till they exhibit symptoms. That way if they are infected they can get them to the proper help they need, and not infect people in other countries. I'm not sure how long exactly it would take for those tests to be completed, but I'm sure it would take less than 21 days. I'm not saying ebola isn't a big deal, because it is. However, it is important that everyone understands what the virus is, how it spreads, and precautions to take.

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