If You Are Not Aware Of Ebola In North America, Now's The Time To Be Informed and Prepare A Plan

Insurance is all about mitigating risk; and in the 21st Century there are a number of core risk areas that we need to be continuously vigilant about--one of which is the threat of a pandemic. 

A second case of Ebola was discovered today in Dallas, Texas from the same hospital that Thomas Eric Duncan, the first case of Ebola in the U.S., was treated. There, according to the Star, Duncan was left in a public area for extended periods of time and was treated by nurses who were "without proper protective gear." According to the Toronto Star, 

"Nurses were forced to use medical tape to secure openings in their flimsy garments, worried that their necks and heads were exposed as they cared for a patient with explosive diarrhea and projectile vomiting, said Deborah Burger of National Nurses United."

Several nurses allegedly reported that the the protocols for mitigating the risk of Ebola outbreak in the hospital were slipshod and constantly changing. As well, samples from Duncan were sent through the hospital's pneumatic tubes thus increasing the risk of wider-spread contamination, and, just as disgusting in its reality as it is shocking in its procedure, "hazardous waste (one source describing as "blood, vomit, and diarrhea-soaked hazardous materials) was allowed to pile up to the ceiling." The patient was treated by nurses who were treating other patients, often without appropriate protective gear, and even covered shoes.

The second victim, a nurse from the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, traveled by plane from Cleveland to Dallas prior to realizing she was infected with the virus. How can you contain a virus in the midst of myopic protocols and lax security procedures? 

On another note, the Globe and Mail reported today that Alberta nurses warn they don't have proper training to cope with Ebola. They are onto something: Is anyone putting together a singular protocol that any hospital can immediately execute to contain a virus of this nature before it becomes a pandemic?

Let's switch gears now and talk about you--what can you do in the event that, in the midst of hospital administration incompetence and overall carelessness by those coming in contact with Ebola victims but insisting on traveling, this seemingly tidy little virus becomes a pandemic? Here are a few things taken loosely from Rainer Stahlberg's work:

• It will be important to have reserves of food and water on hand, in the event that public spaces become unsafe--this is critical item number one for all crises. The last thing you want to be doing is wandering into infected areas to buy food.

• If there is a vaccine that is provable to work, get yourself and your family vaccinated.

• You will need to distance yourself from public areas; also, if you know the incubation for the virus, keep visitors to your home quarantined for that period plus three days. 

• You'll have to determine when to evacuate and when not. Our news sources are not entirely trust worthy, and rumours through social networking can spread and create unwarranted worry. Check multiple news sources and keep yourself educated. Have a battery-powered short-wave radio on hand in the event that you lose access to mobile technology. 

The intent here is not to be alarmist; at the same time, however, we must look at this with a sense objectivity and preparedness in the event that the worse case scenario becomes reality.

The most important thing is that as you're reading the news stories to be neither naive nor cynical. There is cause for concern: we are in the midst of a spreading virus and our hospitals and governments have little clue how to protect us from it. To be vigilant and well-informed is the best thing we can do right now--that and hope that this can be contained, somehow.