Ebola outbreak

[Juliajms]

This seems like one more sloppy debacle. I don't have a lot of sympathy for the three week quarantine by itself, but it could have been done better.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/26/health/new-jersey-quarantined-nurse/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

[DramatistDreamer]

When I read about the nurse Kaci Hickox in yesterday morning's paper, I could just smell legal action coming. And wouldn't you know it, Cuomo decides that if the person shows no symptoms, they can do quarantine at home.

I also read that many of the largest pharmaceutical companies (Johnson & Johnson, GlaxoSmithKline, etc.) are rushing to do human trials now (quelle surprise!), possibly in an effort to stockpile vaccine (stockpiling can be a waste of money, as vaccines tend to have short shelf lives). It's not just about profits for Big Pharma, it's about greed, which does not surprise me in the least as I knew they've always been greedy.

Anyone still believe they're going to take the time to ensure that these vaccines are the safest they can be?

There is an old Chinese proverb: "The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago". The best time to have tested and distributed the Ebola vaccine was probably 10 years ago, but better late than never? I guess...

At the very least, in the wake of the tragic death of Mr. Duncan, the problems at Texas Presyterian Health and the other subsequent Ebola cases, hospitals realized they needed better preparation and went about improving their treatment and handling of prospective cases. Now, it looks as if the states are trying to formulate some policies.

And the hysteria and frenzied political opportunism appears to be diminishing.

[marceline]

I wish that was true. The Cleveland airport closed down a whole concourse because someone on a flight had flu-like symptoms.

[JaneAusten]

Kaci Hickox's case is entirely politically motivated to alleviate fear. But the method and process of quarantining her and the gross misinformation by those speaking to the public on her condition(I am talking about you Governor Christie) seems to have helped sway public opinion. Also the public is now seeing that not everyone who comes in contact with an Ebola patient is getting sick and those who were diagnosed have recovered, so it's not a death sentence. The epidemic in Liberia is completely different that what is happening or even could happen here. Limited availability of medical resources are hindering the ability to get those who could recover to recover. People only become hospitalized when the illness is at it's most contagious state. Those in Nina Pham's state for example, would be sent home to rest, little or no antibiotics or treatment given.

And no comment on the drug trials to come.

Did anyone see the 60 Minutes interview conducted by Scott Pelley last night. Despite all the missteps with how the Texas hospital handled things, it's still amazing only 2 people were infected. The one nurse who was with him it sounds like when he was first admitted, did not have all parts of her body covered and she handling large volumes of vomit and diarrhea, which as it turns out was being handled and disposed of as hazardous waste. And it's odd that the story Duncan told her was different than the story he told officials. I'm not really sure why. But I thought her comments and the male nurse who was attending to him when he died were very enlightening and insightful. For all the criticism I have made about the medical profession, nurses still have the most grueling job yet still can show so much compassion. It truly takes a special person.

[JaneAusten]

Ugh

Well here in Chicago there have so far been 3 people who were taken to University of Chicago hospital who flew in from New Guinea, all experiencing flu-like symptoms and the airport surprisingly was well prepared. No terminals were shut down and they have procedures in place to "decontaminate" the airplanes that arrive from certain countries. All 3 have been cleared and released. One of those 3 was a child who as it turns out was experiencing nausea(no fever) and they concluded the child was suffering from airsickness.

[Soaplovers]

I only.think the.nurse.being quarantined is in reaction to.the doctor in new York doing typical activities while self monitoring.

Doctors and.nurses make.the worst patients..IMHO

[DramatistDreamer]

The guy did indeed have a bike. I was reading an article about the company that did the decontamination of the Harlem apartment he shares with his girlfriend and among the items that they decontaminated? Some bicycles.

Not to sound like I'm propogating stereotypes or anything but I used to live in Harlem and every single White guy of a certain age who lived in Harlem owned a bike when I lived there. Okay, mainly because the majority were European but still...my theory holds firm. He shoulda rode that bike.

[DramatistDreamer]

Mali's quick response to their one Ebola case, a 2 year old girl from Guinea, demonstrates that quick proactive action can help prevent the spread. It's far more impressive because Mali is one of the world's poorest countries and guess what? They never closed their border with Guinea!

Of the 108 people quarantined, over 40 are being released and the rest will be released by next week. No one...not the medicine doctors who tried to treat the girl, nor other bus passengers, not the doctors nor nurses who treated her early on before her diagnosis came in, not even other family members who travelled with her-- no one has tested positive so far.

One thing about Mali that is strikingly different from the 3 countries dealing with an epidemic of the disease. The public's perception. In the 3 infected countries, the disease was allowed to rage though inaction by the government, international community and the public, many of whom did not believe Ebola existed or only existed as a fake disease for the West to sell drugs to Africans. That perception never infiltrated Mali, or Senegal or Nigeria for that matter, which is why I believe the disease never spread the way it did in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

But like I said before, Mali is even more impressive because it is the poorest of all the countries that have limited the spread.

Also, the CDC, which has bore the burnt of criticism (some of which was justified) really stepped up and worked with the hospitals and the goverment.

I feel sad for the little girl who got sick and died. I do think her family's lack of quick action- even at one point denying she had the disease or that the disease exists- may have cost her her precious little life. A doctor was able to convince the stepgrandmother to get the little girl tested, which may have saved the lives of others. I'm glad that so far others were not infected. Hopefully, this remains a tragedy of one.

[Juliajms]

Looks like real progress continues to be made on the vaccine.

http://www.cnn.com/2014/11/27/health/ebola-outbreak/index.html

[DramatistDreamer]

Looks as if the numbers of infected have been steadily declining. The article cites the determination of the people, including community assembled watchdog groups and local chieftans to change peoples' habits and behaviors even before the treatment centers were built.

Good news and I hope that the best of these changes will make a lasting positive impression.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/01/world/as-ebola-ebbs-in-africa-focus-turns-from-death-to-life.html?_r=0

[DRW50]

Months too late, but this idiot has finally left NBC News (they have many other idiots to pick up the slack). She's coming to a hospital near you...

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/nancy-snyderman-exiting-nbc-news-781021

[DramatistDreamer]

NBC is really scrambling with personnel issues as well as programming issues. It's like some sort of weird domino effect at their network. Poor judgement begets poor judgement. Matt Lauer, Brian Williams, Nancy Snyderman, NBC turns down a series which becomes an insta-hit on Netflix (the Unbreakable Kimmy Scmidt) after promoting and ultimately having to drop a scandal plagued Cosby from returning to NBC.

They are not having a good few months, NBC, that's for sure.

[marceline]

I hadn't thought about that but you're right. NBC is falling apart.

[DRW50]

Well, they have The Voice, and Chicago Undertaker, and the new NBC News head is a Brian Williams BFF who will likely make him a superstar again, so things are looking up!

[Khan]

Yeah, when I heard that Andrew Lack was returning to NBC News, all I could think about was how some guys (like Brian Williams) have all the [!@#$%^&*] luck. Because if Steve Burke hadn't asked back Lack, I'm convinced Brian would have been out the door.

If I were Lack, too, I'd tell Brian "no more comedy," plain and simple. No more late-night shows, no more sitcoms, no more anything that has nothing to do with anchoring "NBC Nightly News." Whatever sense of humor he possesses -- and as I have said before (I think), BW is a much better comedian than news reader -- keep ithe humor on the QT and away from the cameras. His credibility cannot withstand any more assaults.