Australia bans travel from Ebola-hit countries

[Davey Jones]

Maybe the United States could learn something from this country.
MONROVIA/FREETOWN (Reuters) - Australia became the first developed country on Tuesday to shut its borders to citizens of the countries worst-hit by the West African Ebola outbreak, a move those states said stigmatized healthy people and would make it harder to fight the disease.
Australia's ban on visas for citizens of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea followed decisions by the U.S. military to quarantine soldiers returning from an Ebola response mission and some U.S. states to isolate aid workers. The United Nations said such measures could discourage vital relief work, making it harder to stop the spread of the deadly virus.

http://news.yahoo.com/u-isolates-troops-australia-slaps-visa-ban-ebola-041640921.html

 

[Debby]

I can't figure this out. In the face of a deadly disease outbreak, instead of voluntarily (staying home/not travelling/self quarantining/protecting those who haven't come even close to the virus) people are getting 'fractured' because they think healthy people are being stigmatized???

I understand the concern here 'The United Nations said such measures could discourage vital relief work, making it harder to stop the spread of the deadly virus', but seriously why does there need to be an official ban or an official quarantine? Has the general public (including doctors and nurses) given up using the brains they were born with? If I was a nurse and volunteered to go there and help, it would be a foregone conclusion that after I'm done, I'd quarantine myself. Totally a pain in the butt however it's not like the issue is the common cold.

 

[QuickSilver]

This is a really odd disease. The relatives of patient zero... Eric Duncan lived in the same apartment with him.. WHILE he was very ill.. vomiting and diarrhea everywhere.. in fact they had to STAY in the apartment with all the dirty linen and surfaces for a week before they were moved. Not one single one of these relatives came down with Ebola. I really can't explain that.. and I don't understand it. Yet we are worried when asymptomatic people ride a subway, or go out for coffee. The guidelines are clear.. you are not contagious until you develop symptoms... as you become sicker the viral load increases and you become more contagious as time progresses. These people are instructed to take their temp twice a day, and report an increase above 100.4... then they are isolated and quarantined. And that is exactly with Dr.Simon did. Are people not comfortable with that?

 

[Debby]

I guess until there aren't mixed messages coming at the world from every direction, it won't be good enough (take your temp twice a day and go enjoy the movie).




I came across the following this morning: http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/pdf/infections-spread-by-air-or-droplets.pdf

and it says: "...Droplet spread happens when germs traveling inside droplets that arecoughed or sneezed from a sick person enter the eyes, nose, or mouth ofanother person. Droplets travel short distances, less than 3 feet (1 meter)from one person to another. A person might also get infected by touching a surface or object that hasgerms on it and then touching their mouth or nose.
Droplet spread diseases include: plague, Ebola.


Is there any guarantee that a person isn't contagious in the moments just after they've sneezed and just before they put their hand on their forehead and say "do I feel hot to you" or "I think I'll take my temperature again". How do we know when that moment is where a virus has reached overload in a persons system and their body begins to mount its ineffective forces?

And you're right, it's a big mystery why Mr. Duncan's family didn't get sick. Probably something that doctors and researchers are questioning too. Natural immunity perhaps?

 

[oakapple]

It's the nature of something like ebola or plague, some people go down fast and others stay healthy, so yes, an element of luck but also good strong immune systems too.I think OZ is entirely sensible to stop people coming into the country from infected regions. The less it spreads itself about the better.

 

[QuickSilver]

The question is... who has WHAT to gain by sending mixed messages and keeping people afraid? AND conversely, who has what to gain by calming people and reassuing them that ebola is really a hard disease to catch. Do the major epidemiologists have anything to gain? What to they get by lying to people? What would their motives be? Why would they want people to catch ebola? On the other side of the coin... now who has something to gain by keeping people fearful and whipped up into a frenzy? Could that be the politician hoping to be elected in a week... or hoping their party gains the Senate? hmmmmmm..... when people are scared, they are going to vote their fears... whether founded or not. After thinking about this... I'm going to put my faith in the science.. You have to remember... there are only TWO cases of home grown ebola.. Two cases out of 320 Million Americans.. and those were people that had direct contact with a dying ebola patient... the two nurses.. I'm not concerned about droplets... the virus is not an airborne virus.. there is no scientific evidence of mutation. The virus dies very easily when out in the air. so fomite contamination is doubtful.