Ebola Virus Outbreak

The Ebola virus is among the three dominant genera of the virus family Filoviridae. The other two viruses in this family are the Cueva virus and Marburg virus. Ebola virus has six significant species. They are Ebola Zaire, Sudan, Tai Forest, Bundibugyo, Bombali, and Reston. The objective of this study is to analyze the dimensions of the recent 2014 Ebola Zaire virus outbreak in Guinea, West Africa. 

Ebola Virus Disease Local and National Responses

The first outbreak of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) was announced in December 2013 in the southeastern forest of Guinea in an infant who was believed to have been infected by bats. The Ministry of Health in Guinea was the first respondent to the EVD outbreak. The ministry issued a health alert of the outbreak of an unidentified illness within the country on March 13th, 2014 (Agusto, Teboh-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). The World Health Organization announced the outbreak of EVD as a global disaster on March 3rd, 2014 (Agusto, Teboh-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). 

The first response took place on January 24th, 2014, one month after the first case (Agusto, Teboh-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). Five more cases caused the issuing of a health alert by a medical officer in the village where many patients had been diagnosed with fatal diarrhea. After the virus spread to the city of Conakry, the Guinea Ministry of Health issued a local and global alert. It was not till the Pasteur Institute of France identified Zaire ebolavirus as the cause of the EVD outbreak. 

Local healthcare providers responded by issuing health alerts as soon as the number of patients diagnosed with extreme diarrhea continued. Global healthcare providers responded by enlightening the world about the history of Ebola, mode of transmission, infection rate, and effective prevention strategies. However, they were too late since EVD had already extended to Sierra Leone and Liberia. 

How did Social Issues such as Race, Gender, and Class Affect Ebola’s Response?

The fear and social implications that the EVD global epidemic managed to solstice in 2014 stretched beyond all social issues such as race, class, and gender. Scientifically, there was no evidence to implicate Ebola as a racially discriminatory outbreak. However, as a result of the nature of racial profiling in the 21st century, Ebola was majorly associated with “blackness.” In the United States and Europe, the case was not any different as both the media and learning institutions played crucial roles in fueling the racial fear of the “African” Ebola. The fact that the disease originally stemmed from Guinea, West Africa, created the unwritten impression of fear of the known across several “White” platforms.

Zaire ebolavirus affected both genders in almost equal measure. However, research from reputable sources of information indicates that 55% of all Ebola cases were women (Agusto, Tebo-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). Additionally, 56.6% of all contact cases were women (Agusto, Tebo-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). When it comes to class, EVD impacted all cultures similarly. In the United States, for instance, Ebola undermined and worsened the scientific, cultural, and political segmentation that already existed before its arrival. It is as a result of these segments that discrimination emerged.

Most of these discriminations were exhibited in the form of social classes in terms of the hierarchy of power. Suppose the EVD outbreak was a natural disaster like the 2011 earthquake in Japan, perhaps social issues like race, class, and gender would not have been a great concern. According to Mitano, Kako, and Mayner (2014), the efficiency of healthcare professionals’ response at the Japanese 2011 earthquake was facilitated by the local and global unison efforts in providing medical support, care, and future compensation plans for the victims. This was unlike the case of the EVD outbreak in 2014.

Healthcare Barriers on Global Prevention of Ebola Transmission

Inadequate Human Resources and Clinic Materials in Ebola Treatment Units (ETUs)

In the early months of 2014, there was a shortage of reliable Zaire ebolavirus material supply, especially in ETUs (Agusto, Teboh-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). There was an inadequate stock of fundamental items such as syringes, medicine, electricity, enough monitoring devices, and other necessary prevention equipment. Also, an increase in the number of EVD patients meant that the ration of professional nurses to patients shifted drastically. For instance, patients in West Africa that were affected by the virus lacked professional lab recruits that could use the diagnostic and monitoring devices appropriately due to high numbers. However, after a few upgrades and adjustments from the intervention of global health institutions like WHO and UN AID, there was improvement among the EVD patients. Still, they were in their final stage of the epidemic. 

Delayed and Poor Coordination from National and Global Response Teams

EVD outbreak presented an extraordinary challenge that affected health care services, governmental and non-governmental firms. There were weak professional liaising in-between fields of life that could help prevent further transmission of Ebola. By mid-year 2014, reports about new lives claimed by the global epidemic continued to hit the news waves (Agusto, Teboh-Ewungkem & Gumel, 2015). Still, there were extensive and implicational healthcare delays in the overall epidemiological surveillance of Ebola due to unsolved political differences. This finally led to the cross-contamination of the suspected and confirmed Ebola cases, especially in overcrowded ETUs.

Long Distances and Remoteness of Medical Centers

The absence of nearby proficient medical centers led to limited information among communities and increased the spread of EVD. Patients had to travel for more than 3 or 4 hours to access EVD medical services. In other cases, refusal of medication became a consequence of the ignorance and fear of testing positive of the EVD. Most of these patients believed that once they visit the health center and test positive, they might die, and their bodies will be incinerated instead of being buried the traditional way (Agusto & Teboh- Ewunkem, & Gumel, 2015). The challenge was that these patients lacked a clear understanding and visibility of the transmission, spread, and prevention of EVD. This, in turn, made it hard for them to mitigate and face their fears of visiting health centers for recommended assistance. 

The Role of International Healthcare Firms and Altruistic Organizations in Providing Healthcare Services to Ebola Patients

Global healthcare companies like WHO and Africare worked hand in hand with altruistic organizations like the American Red Cross and The International Medical Corps to combat the spread of EVD in the following strategies. First, they helped in reducing the transmission rate of EVD by enlightening society through education and mass media. For example, consider the Samaritan Purse Association. The company has almost 15 medical centers across Liberia rural areas whose core purpose is to provide adequate information and safety to all the Ebola patients (Charania, 2012). Second, altruistic and international organizations are partnered with each other to increase medical, social, and economic resources for shipping and supply of the necessary EVD materials.

Equally vital, organizations such as CURE, International Rescue Committee, and Doctors Without Borders continued to play their role effortlessly in educating a team of community volunteers regarding the proper use of the medical supplies. The third and final role was to address the economic fallout and disparity by providing food and other essential items to the isolated Ebola patients. Save The Children is one of the most influential organizations that played extensive roles in ensuring that the patients received psychosocial assistance for survivors, especially orphans.

The Role of Professional Nurses During the EVD Outbreak

Registered nurses significantly mitigated the spread of EVD, especially right at the center of the hit zone of the global epidemic. Professional nurses actively engaged in labor-related tasks in disease-stricken zones. For instance, setting up shelters for all EVD patients, test protocols and consultations units, and digging graves while disinfecting them to avoid further spread of the disease.

The other primary responsibility of competent nurses was to execute a fusion of community and administrative goals of preventing further spread of the disease. Some of these roles include screening Ebola patients, creating room for contact tracing, and finally encouraging both local and global care of patients diagnosed with EVD. When it came to the scope of professional practice, there were no limitations to where, how, and when competent healthcare providers’ efforts and volunteering could stretch. Professionally seconded, Rowthorn (2013) insisted that laying a global platform and engaging the community to prevent disease transmission to curb the implications of worldwide epidemics is key to safeguarding the future against disease reoccurrence. This means that the scope of practice for registered nurses was barely affected by the Ebola outbreak.

Other roles that professional nurses did during the Ebola epidemic was partnering with community volunteers and enabling health workers to understand and address the fears of society regarding the disease. These nurses knew that unlike the Asian Tsunami, Ebola was not natural. This created fear, misconceptions, and stereotypes that resulted in racial segmentation across various social classes. Li and Zheng (2014) share the opinion that the significant lesson after the Tsunami was the relevance of the combined efforts of both the community and healthcare practice in meeting the needs of the victims. By addressing the fears, concerns, and questions raised in society about Ebola, the professional nurses managed to minimize the spread of negative issues like racial and class discrimination. 

References

Agusto, F. B., Teboh-Ewungkem, M. I., & Gumel, A. B. (2015). Mathematical assessment of the effect of traditional beliefs and customs on the transmission dynamics of the 2014 Ebola outbreaks. BMC Medicine, 13(1), 1–17.

Charania, N. A., & Tsuji, L. (2012). A community-based participatory approach and engagement process creates culturally appropriate and community informed pandemic plans after the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic: Remote and isolated First Nations communities of Sub-Arctic Ontario, Canada. BMC Public Health, 12(1), 268–276.

Li, X. H., & Zheng, J. C. (2014). Efficient post-disaster patient transportation and transfer: Experiences and lessons learned in emergency medical rescue in Aceh after the 2004 Asian tsunami. Military Medicine, 179(8), 913–919.

Mitani, S., Kako, M., & Mayner, L. (2014). Medical relief for the 2011 Japan earthquake: A nursing account. Nursing & Health Sciences, 16(1), 26–30.

Rowthorn, V. (2013). A place for all at the global health table: A case study about creating an interprofessional global health project. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 41(4), 907–914.