Global Health Update 10/22 Ebola

EBOLA

Suffer the Children
Thousands of deaths, a paralyzed economy… The Ebola virus has affected daily life in Liberia in countless ways. One more: Plummeting vaccination rates for children.

Pre-Ebola: 97% of babies received their routine vaccinations. Now: Just 27% are, NPR reports. The deaths of health care workers, the shuttering of health facilities and an undercurrent of rumors that vaccines sparked the Ebola epidemic have combined to make it harder to prevent preventable diseases in the country. A UNICEF representative reports measles are already appearing in Lofa County—the epicenter of Ebola in Liberia.

Health workers like Che Che Richardson at the Clara Town Health Center, are pleading with mothers in the community to bring their children for vaccinations. “Let them bring their babies so that they can be able to fight against the sicknesses,” Richardson says.
** NPR (http://jhsph.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0a43ad874dbe00d8f0545cfef&id=de127e6b17&e=9c1fcebfa3)

The Ethics of Withholding Care
As they learn to cope with Ebola, U.S. hospitals are considering whether to withhold some medical interventions deemed too dangerous for medical staff and not likely save a life.

Dialysis and intubation ultimately failed to save Thomas Eric Duncan, the first man diagnosed with Ebola in the U.S., and 2 nurses were infected caring for him. In a shift from the U.S. medical profession’s typical all-out approach to lifesaving, doctors are now consulting ethics experts about professional obligations to patients.

To address concerns that some hospitals and staff are ill-equipped to safely perform invasive procedures, U.S. health officials are working to establish 20 hospitals up to the task, and clinical guidelines on procedures like dialysis for Ebola patients.

The Quote: "To have a blanket refusal to offer these procedures is not ethically acceptable,” said G. Kevin Donovan, director of the bioethics center at Georgetown University.”
** Reuters (http://jhsph.us3.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0a43ad874dbe00d8f0545cfef&id=7d35aa9cfc&e=9c1fcebfa3)

Related: Ebola riot in S. Leone kills two as WHO to launch vaccine trials – ** AFP (http://jhsph.us3.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=0a43ad874dbe00d8f0545cfef&id=c6f7944ecb&e=9c1fcebfa3)


Related: U.S. tightens Ebola monitoring for West African visitors – ** Reuters (http://jhsph.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0a43ad874dbe00d8f0545cfef&id=7425666215&e=9c1fcebfa3)

Related: How to Shut Down a Country and Kill a Disease (Laurie Garrett) – ** Foreign Policy (http://jhsph.us3.list-manage.com/track/click?u=0a43ad874dbe00d8f0545cfef&id=e78022dd35&e=9c1fcebfa3)