Local doctor discusses Ebola outbreak

11/18/2014 11:03 AM

By Danielle Fitch ‘15

Though the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has Americans on high alert, a local health expert says proper medical care should stem the tide against the disease.

Dr. Marc Carrigan, a Peoria physician and professor at University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria, told Bradley students that societal upheaval and inadequate medical supplies made this outbreak so severe.

Though there have been at least three other Ebola outbreaks in Africa, the present one has affected more people than the previous three combined.

This strain of the disease, Ebola Zaire, first occurred in a toddler in a refugee camp in Guinea. The region has been torn by political turmoil in recent years, leaving masses of people to migrate through the territory. With little opportunity for adequate medical care, Ebola Zaire spread quickly in the capital cities of Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia because of unsanitary customs and traditions.

Ebola can only be contracted by direct contact with the bodily fluids (blood, vomit and stool), broken skin or mucus membranes of an infected person. According to cultural traditions, many families have direct contact with the deceased whether preparing the body for burial or performing traditional funeral customs. In this hands-on type of culture, one funeral can transfer the virus to as many as 300 people. 

The disease has a 90 percent fatality rate because of its presence in developing countries that lack medical resources; however, it is no more contagious than the flu. In her home, a young nursing student in Africa was able to treat her father, mother and cousin without infecting herself simply by using plastic bags creatively and strict adherence to her training in maintaining sanitary conditions. Both her mother and father survived through the proper administration of fluids and careful monitoring.

The Ebola outbreak could be quickly eliminated with proper medical care for the infected. Organizations such as UNICEF, Samaritan’s Purse and Save the Children are working to stop the disease’s spread.