WASH, Patient Isolation, Information Sharing Vital To Stopping Present, Future Ebola Epidemics

Washington Post: What worked in controlling the Ebola outbreak in West Africa
Editorial Board

“…Ebola spreads through bodily fluids, but transmission can be interrupted if those infected are identified and treated as soon as possible and contacts with others traced. … A lesson here is that, in parts of the world where health care infrastructure is weak, it is of huge benefit to isolate the infected even in rudimentary facilities, and that an airlift of temporary centers can make a real difference. In the end, fighting an outbreak is not only battling a virus but also dealing effectively with people, modifying their behavior and taming their fears…” (1/30).

GlobalPost: Ebola’s public health message: Sanitation is critical to containing the disease
Maria H. de Miguel of Columbia University Medical Center

“…Running water and flushing toilets are such basic elements of life [in developed countries] that we tend to take them for granted. In poor countries, outdoor toilets are common, meaning there is no running water for hand washing. … For the ill and weak, not having indoor plumbing means fluids are discharged in the living space, around family, and can contain billions of viruses. … Our fear [of an outbreak] should catalyze a revolutionary fervor among people and leaders of all countries to bring living conditions out of the Middle Ages and into the modern era of sanitation…” (1/31).

The KFF Daily Global Health Policy Report summarized news and information on global health policy from hundreds of sources, from May 2009 through December 2020. All summaries are archived and available via search.

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