Ebola: Mapping the outbreak 14 January 2016
Introduction
The article is highlighting the issue of Ebola outbreak that was experienced in West Africa in March twenty fourteen. The outbreak was rapidly reported as the worst occurrence ever since it was discovered in nineteen seventy six. The outbreak was the deadliest because it cost the lives of people five times more than the rest known outbreaks of Ebola put together. According to the article, the epidemic was the worst as it claimed the lives of eleven thousand, three hundred and fifteen people. This was experienced in a period of over twenty one months and the first case was discovered on the twenty third of March two thousand and fourteen. The deaths occurred in six countries which are the United States of America, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria. Approximately twenty nine thousand cases had been reported in two thousand and fourteen. On January two thousand and sixteen Liberia was declared Ebola free by the World Health Organization. The Ebola outbreak is a public health issue because it is spread to people by wild animals and then from human to human. It is a severe and a fatal disease brought about by the Ebola virus and the symptoms show between two days and three weeks. These signs are sore throat, headaches, fever and muscular pain during the early stage and later diarrhea, rash and vomiting. The internal organs such as the kidney and the liver are affected as they decrease their function and therefore cause internal and external bleeding. It is a public health issue it risks death by killing twenty five to ninety percent of the people with the illness.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28755033
One of the causes of the current 2015 to 2016 issue is air pollution which is on the rise and is causing deaths of many people. A study carried out in 2015 showed that six million people die every year in China due to cases of air pollution. The issue is severe as it causes breathing problems and blocks the lungs which then cause deaths. The people who are mostly affected are men who smoke because this leads to poor quality of the air. It may cause the deaths of twenty percent male adults who smoke (Quammen, 2014). This issue is poorer in the United Arab Emirates as the pollutants in their air consist of eighty micrograms per cubic meter which is the highest. The World Health Organization should be prepared and plan on how to deal with the increase of the respiratory and the related health issues. The other cause is the shortage of health workers and statistics show that there is a shortage of seven million nurses, doctors and midwives in the whole world. This issue is serious because most patients suffer and die in some cases because there are no medical staffs to attend to them. This issue need to be addressed by most countries who should work together to meet their targets which are health related. This means that they should form a stronger health work force that will be distributed equally around the world. They should also have access to improved technology (Quammen, 2014).
One of the public health agencies who are involved with this issue is the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention which is headquartered in Beijing. The agency is addressing the issue of Air pollution by giving information about the dangers of smog and smoking. It creates awareness especially to the men who smoke in order for them to know the dangers involved with smoking (Sande, 2015). It is also endorses the health of people affected by partnering with other organizations. It deals mostly with preventing diseases and controlling environmental health and other issues in China Republic. The other agency is the World Health Organization which is dealing with the worldwide shortage of medical staff. The agency is dealing with sustain the development goals and involving more countries. It is helping them to work towards covering the universal health in order to meet their targets. The agency is helping them to build a wide and extra evenly distributed medical staff also involving community health workers. They are also ensuring access technology worldwide and also an approach to take care to the ones in need. The agency is also introducing a worldwide strategy to achieve this (Sande, 2015).
The world health organization intervened to take care of the epidemic in West Africa and on January 2016, it declared the countries free from it. Doctors were sent from other Countries to handle the case and assist the local ones. This relates with the interventions discussed in 345 course readings because it ensures that people have quality hygiene levels and good nutrition (Novick, 2008).
Conclusion
My recommendation is that the World Health Organization should be more alert before such epidemic takes place. They should cooperate with the people concerned with the animals who may cause the virus. This is to ensure that the animals are properly vaccinated and kept away from human beings. They should also come up with proper measures to deal with the epidemics as soon as they occur in order to prevent it from spreading as fast as this case.
References
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-28755033
Quammen, D. (2014). Ebola: The natural and human history.
Sande, P. (2015). Quick reference to cobra compliance: 2015-2016edition. Place of publication not identified: Wolters Kluwer Law & Bus.
Novick, L. F., Morrow, C. B., & Mays, G. P. (2008). Public health administration: Principles for population-based management. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett Pub.
