C228 Task 2: Community Outbreak Communicable Disease that has crossed international borders- Ebola Virus

The communicable disease that I have chosen to discuss in this essay is the Ebola virus spread across several international countries.

Ebola Description

Ebola disease is a viral disease that is also referred to as Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever. This disease was discovered in 1976 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ebola affects both primates and humans, and it is known to be deadly. Scholars have not yet discovered the origin of this virus, but it is hypothesized to have originated from a fruit bat that is a carrier of this virus, according to the CDC, 2018. This viral disease spread across various international borders, including Cote D’Ivoire, an Ebola outbreak in 1994 (Dellicour et al., 2018). The Democratic Republic of the Congo had many outbreaks for many years, from 1976, 1977, 1995, 2001 to 2003, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2014, 2017, and 2018. In England, the Ebola outbreak occurred in 1976 (Ilunga et al., 2019). Gabon also had outbreaks for many years, from 1994, 1996, 1997, and 2001 to 2002.

Italy also experienced Ebola outbreaks from 1992, 2014, 2015, and 2016. Liberia, Mali, Guinea, Senegal, Spain, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria experienced outbreaks from 2014 to 2016. The outbreaks that occurred in the Philippines were through pigs and primates. The outbreak that occurred through pigs occurred in 1996, 2008, and that which was contracted from primates occurred in 1989 to 1990. Russia experienced minimal cases of the Ebola virus in 1996 and 2014. South Africa also had minimal cases of Ebola outbreaks in 1996. In 2014, Sudan had 17 Ebola cases; in 1979, they had 34, and in 1976 they had 284 cases. The outbreaks occurred in many years, such as from 2000 to 2001, 2007 to 2008, and 2011 to 2013. In the United States, outbreaks of the Ebola virus occurred from 2014 to 2016. They also experienced minimal cases in primates, which did not affect humans in 1989 to 1990 and 1996, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018. This disease crossed various international borders and was life-threatening globally.

Determinants of Epidemiology

Africa was underdeveloped during the discovery of Ebola. People were illiterate, and they did not have the medical equipment needed to curb the spread of the Ebola virus. The measures of controlling infection were inadequate, and tracing the route of infection was impossible. The treatment of this infectious disease during the early presentations of symptoms was similarly unknown. For instance, in Yambuku hospital, there were cases whereby nurses used five syringes to administer medications for 300-600 patients, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018 (Nakiire et al., 2020). This happed during the initial outbreak of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Citizens lacked knowledge of transmission channels and received poor health advice. Africa’s culture is one of the risk factors for transmitting this disease. As populations grew, invasion into previously undisturbed woodland lands became inevitable. Ebola can be transmitted from a bat to a variety of different animals without causing any symptoms. This might generate complications since individuals would continue to hunt bush meat for ceremonies or sustenance, exposing themselves to the disease (CDC, 2018). Burials were another cultural danger factor. Ebola virus levels are at their maximum just before and after death. Before a burial ritual, the deceased is bathed by hand and clothed according to tradition (Nakiire et al., 2020). Humanitarian organizations were quick to rule out these burial practices, which people did not take lightly.

Route of transmission

Fruit bats, which are Ebola hosts, are considered to have spread the virus first. Fruit bats infect animals in the forest. When humans contact these fluids or a dead body of an animal infected with the Ebola virus, they get infected.  The Ebola virus is spread through blood, secretions, organs, perspiration, mucous membrane, and saliva are the transmission routes for the Ebola virus. These are the main routes of transmission of the Ebola virus to humans, especially in human-to-human contact according to Consistent condom use can help prevent Ebola transmission through sexual activity (Lawrence et al., 2017). The consequences of the Ebola virus on sperm after a person has been declared cured still require research, according to World Health Organization, 2018.

Ebola Virus Impact on community

There would be a lot of fear and panic in my neighborhood if an Ebola breakout occurred. Individuals are likely to withdraw from their homes and be more cautious when going to public places. As the number of cases of exposure increased, small enterprises would close. At the supermarkets, there would be a swarm of people. Small altercations would necessitate more police presence. Schools have infectious illness policies in place that help teachers to recognise when students are infected. When there is an outbreak in schools, parents are advised to make their children stay at home to avoid being infected. Whenever there is an outbreak in schools, the school will be shut down to avoid spreading this infectious virus. Patients infected with Ebola would need to be kept in containment units in hospitals. Patients already in the hospital are likely to leave or want a lot of assurance that infection control policies are being followed. The hospital’s staff would be put under strain because a few employees would almost certainly become ill as well. Public transit would either cease to exist or become extremely selective in who is permitted to use it (Himelein & Kastelic, 2021). Before consumers can travel, they may be subjected to travel screenings.

Protocols of Outbreak Reporting in the Community

Programs on communicable diseases started in Vancouver, Washington, collaborates with healthcare providers across the US. These programs focus on reporting any potential outbreaks or areas of concern among client groups. In addition, this program attempts to manage and prevent infectious diseases which have spread to the communities. The community members themselves are the first and most essential reporters. If someone suspects that their community is infected with an infectious disease, they should contact their local public health department.  When a report about an infectious disease in the community reaches the public health department, a Board of Health Council member from the county will be deployed to investigate this disease to provide more information. The public health team communicates with medical professionals to determine the severity of this infectious diseases such as Ebola. The Board of Council members will provide containment measures for this disease in every possible way. These containment measures include closing malls, buildings, and public places to ensure no spread of these diseases through contact and aerosols (World Health Organization, 2019). When the containment measures are successful, and the spread of the infectious diseases are contained, the Board of health Council member informs the Department of Health of State to provide further containment measures and guidance.

Strategies of Preventing Outbreaks in the Communities

Education, just like other preventative techniques, is essential. Ebola virus can arrive in any community or town through travelers. The existing airports can contrast structures and facilities whereby volunteers and nurses give out leaflets containing information on prevention and safety while traveling to those areas known to be Ebola-affected. They may provide information on transmission channels and early warning signs and symptoms. This would aid in the treatment of a possible case as soon as it is discovered. Infectious illness protocols can be conducted semiannually in hospitals to identify system faults (Adongo et al., 2016). It’s also crucial to educate hospital employees about adequate PPE and provide them with the necessary equipment.

Influenza in Bentonville

Bentonville is one of the areas where the flu has spread. The city has a population of 1,412,000 people, with 1435 people sick and 86 people dying as a result of the epidemic. There were 60,623 people at risk, and 7,701 were vaccinated. Following the pandemic, standard treatment was delivered across the city, demonstrating that the majority of people received the care they need, whereas flu care was not supplied to many people and critical care was provided at a low rate.

Community Advocacy

The first step is to educate people about influenza and how readily it may spread. People will realize the necessity of obtaining the flu vaccine early to avoid contracting the virus in this way. The campaign will encourage everyone, including children, adolescents, adults, and the elderly, to get vaccinated against the flu. People will accept vaccines if they understand the importance of the flu, and the spread of influenza following an outbreak will be reduced.

Emergency Response

Isolating sick people from healthy ones is the first step in the emergency response. Influenza is a serious illness that, once disseminated, has the potential to kill a huge number of individuals while also affecting others. The financial cost is enormous, necessitating the administration of medication to the afflicted on an emergency basis. Some anti-viruses can be harmed by persons who have already been infected with the flu.

References

Adongo, P. B., Tabong, P. T. N., Asampong, E., Ansong, J., Robalo, M., & Adanu, R. M. (2016). Preparing towards preventing and containing an Ebola virus disease outbreak: what Socio-cultural practices may affect containment efforts in Ghana?. PLoS neglected tropical diseases, 10(7), e0004852.

Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (2018) Ebola. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/index.html

Dellicour, S., Baele, G., Dudas, G., Faria, N. R., Pybus, O. G., Suchard, M. A., & Lemey, P. (2018). Phylodynamic assessment of intervention strategies for the West African Ebola virus outbreak. Nature communications, 9(1), 1-9.

Himelein, K., & Kastelic, J. G. (2021). The Socio-Economic Impacts of Ebola in Liberia: Results from a High-Frequency Cell Phone Survey, Round 5.

Ilunga Kalenga, O., Moeti, M., Sparrow, A., Nguyen, V. K., Lucey, D., & Ghebreyesus, T. A. (2019). The ongoing Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 2018–2019. New England Journal of Medicine, 381(4), 373-383.

Lawrence, P., Danet, N., Reynard, O., Volchkova, V., & Volchkov, V. (2017). Human transmission of Ebola virus. Current opinion in virology, 22, 51-58.

Nakiire, L., Mwanja, H., Pillai, S. K., Gasanani, J., Ntungire, D., Nsabiyumva, S., & Mafigiri, R. (2020). Population movement patterns among the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda during an outbreak of Ebola virus disease: results from community engagement in two districts—Uganda, March 2019. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 69(1), 10.

World Health Organization. (2019). Ebola Virus Disease Democratic Republic of Congo: External Situation Report 50.

Zinszer, K., Morrison, K., Verma, A., & Brownstein, J. S. (2017). Spatial determinants of Ebola virus disease risk for the West African epidemic. PLoS currents, 9.