Situation Report

Ebola in Africa and the U.S.: A Curation

Sun, 2014-08-10 22:02 — Maeryn Obley

wired.com - August 4th, 2014 - Maryn McKenna

The Ebola outbreak has been building in West Africa for a while, but when it was revealed at the end of last week that two American aid workers had caught the disease — and that they were being transported back to the US for treatment — the news and the reaction to it instantly filled every channel. Over the weekend, so much misinformation and outrage got pumped out that it feels as though there’s no way to cut through the noise.

But I have a few thoughts. Start with this: No, I don’t think the two aid workers who are being returned to the US pose any risk at all to the average American, or even the average Atlanta resident.

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Panel discussion on ethical considerations for use of unregistered interventions for Ebola viral disease

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:41 — Maeryn Obley

who.int - August 8th, 2014

The recent treatment of two health and workers infected with the Ebola virus with experimental medicine has raised questions about whether medicine that has never been tested and shown to be safe in people should be used in the outbreak, and, given the extremely limited amount of medicine available, if it is used, who should receive it.

A number of interventions have been through the laboratory and animal study phases of development. It is likely that ‘first in man’ studies will be conducted over the next 2-4 months. It is also likely that the number of doses available for further study and/or deployment from end 2014 onwards will remain insufficient to meet demand.

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Tracing Ebola’s Breakout to an African 2-Year-Old

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:29 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Doctors Without Borders workers at an Ebola treatment center in Guinea in April, shortly after the virus was recognized. Credit Kjell Gunnar Beraas/Doctors Without Borders

nytimes.com - By DENISE GRADY and SHERI FINK - August 9, 2014

Patient Zero in the Ebola outbreak, researchers suspect, was a 2-year-old boy who died on Dec. 6, just a few days after falling ill in a village in Guéckédou, in southeastern Guinea. Bordering Sierra Leone and Liberia, Guéckédou is at the intersection of three nations, where the disease found an easy entry point to the region.

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Ebola Virus Info - Facebook

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:28 — Kathy Gilbeaux

(THE GLOBAL RESILIENCE SYSTEM IS ASSISTING WITH THE ADMINISTRATION OF A FACEBOOK PAGE TITLED
"Ebola Virus Info".
CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE "Ebola Virus Info" FACEBOOK PAGE.)

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Ebola Virus Info - Twitter - @InfoEbola

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:27 — Kathy Gilbeaux

Global Resilience System-great up to date info: http://t.co/u8ValDjczW
— Ebola Virus Info (@InfoEbola) August 7, 2014

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What’s scary about Ebola, reasons not to fear it

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:26 — Maeryn Obley

Image: In this Aug. 7, 2014, photo, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Tom Frieden testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington. Ebola is a "painful, dreadful, merciless virus," the United States' top disease fighter says. The outbreak in West Africa has been declared an international health emergency, already killing more than 900 people and spreading. That's scary, and it's serious. But it needs context. (AP Photo/Molly Riley)

sltrib.com - August 9th, 2014 - Connie Cass

The United States’ top disease detective calls Ebola a "painful, dreadful, merciless virus."

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WHO urged to allow experimental drugs in "dire" Ebola outbreak

Sun, 2014-08-10 20:20 — Maeryn Obley

Volunteers prepare to remove the bodies of people who were suspected of contracting Ebola and died in the community in the village of Pendebu, north of Kenema August 2 , 2014. REUTERS/WHO/Tarik Jasarevic/Handout via Reuters

Image: Volunteers prepare to remove the bodies of people who were suspected of contracting Ebola and died in the community in the village of Pendebu, north of Kenema August 2 , 2014. REUTERS/WHO/Tarik Jasarevic/Handout via Reuters

trust.org - August 5th, 2014 - Kate Kelland

Three of the world's leading Ebola specialists called on Tuesday for experimental drugs and vaccines to be offered to people in West Africa, where a vast outbreak of the deadly disease is raging in three countries.

Noting that American aid workers who contracted the disease in Liberia were given an unapproved medicine before being evacuated back to the United States, the specialists - including Peter Piot, who co-discovered Ebola in 1976 - said Africans affected by the same outbreak should get the same chance.

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China plans to ban coal use in Beijing by 2020

Sun, 2014-08-10 12:49 — Maeryn Obley

Chinese workers level coal to be used for generating electricity on a freight train at a railway station in Jiujiang city on June 16, 2014. Imaginechina via AP Images

Image: Chinese workers level coal to be used for generating electricity on a freight train at a railway station in Jiujiang city on June 16, 2014. Imaginechina via AP Images

america.aljazeera.com - August 5th, 2014

China has announced plans to ban the use of coal in its smog-plagued capital by the end of 2020, as the country fights deadly levels of pollution, especially in major cities.

Beijing's Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau posted the plan on its website on Monday, saying the city would instead prioritize electricity and natural gas for heating.

The Chinese central government recently listed environmental protection as one of the top criteria by which leaders will be judged.

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Video - Ebola - A Race Against Time | MSF

Sat, 2014-08-09 18:09 — Kathy Gilbeaux

http://www.msf.org.uk/ebola

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F5nkkEwPaEA

msf.org - July 18, 2014

146 Ebola patients have fully recovered in MSF treatment centres in Guinea & Sierra Leone.

https://twitter.com/msf_uk/status/498047294143344643

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MSF - Doctors Without Borders - Ebola Guide

Sat, 2014-08-09 17:54 — Kathy Gilbeaux

msf.org

Ebola is one of the world’s most deadly diseases. It is a highly infectious virus that can kill up to 90 percent of the people who catch it, causing terror among infected communities.

Ebola is so infectious that patients need to be treated in isolation by staff wearing protective clothing. MSF has over 670 staff on the ground and we have brought in more than 40 tonnes of equipment and supplies to help fight the epidemic.

Read MSF's response to the World Health Organisation statement declaring the Ebola outbreak "an extraordinary event".

(CLICK HERE, THEN SCROLL DOWN TO VIEW THE MSF EBOLA GUIDE)

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