Download or read book The Ebola Epidemic in West Africa written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2016-12-30 with total page 137 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The most recent Ebola epidemic that began in late 2013 alerted the entire world to the gaps in infectious disease emergency preparedness and response. The regional outbreak that progressed to a significant public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) in a matter of months killed 11,310 and infected more than 28,616. While this outbreak bears some unique distinctions to past outbreaks, many characteristics remain the same and contributed to tragic loss of human life and unnecessary expenditure of capital: insufficient knowledge of the disease, its reservoirs, and its transmission; delayed prevention efforts and treatment; poor control of the disease in hospital settings; and inadequate community and international responses. Recognizing the opportunity to learn from the countless lessons of this epidemic, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a workshop in March 2015 to discuss the challenges to successful outbreak responses at the scientific, clinical, and global health levels. Workshop participants explored the epidemic from multiple perspectives, identified important questions about Ebola that remained unanswered, and sought to apply this understanding to the broad challenges posed by Ebola and other emerging pathogens, to prevent the international community from being taken by surprise once again in the face of these threats. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

Download or read book Understanding West Africas Ebola Epidemic written by Ibrahim Abdullah and published by Zed Books Ltd.. This book was released on 2017-10-15 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From 2013 to 2015, over 11,000 people across West Africa lost their lives to the deadliest outbreak of the Ebola virus in history. Crucially, this epidemic marked the first time the virus was able to spread beyond rural areas to major cities, overturning conventional assumptions about its epidemiology. With backgrounds ranging from development to disease control, the contributors to this volume - some of them based in countries affected by the Ebola epidemic - consider the underlying factors that shaped this unprecedented outbreak. While championing the heroic efforts of local communities and aid workers in halting the spread of the disease, the contributors also reveal deep structural problems in both the countries and humanitarian agencies involved, which hampered the efforts to contain the epidemic. Alarmingly, they show that little has been learned from these events, with health provision remaining underfunded and poorly equipped to deal with future outbreaks. Such issues, they argue, reflect the wider challenges we face in tackling epidemic disease in an increasingly interconnected world.

Download or read book Learning from SARS written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2004-04-26 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) in late 2002 and 2003 challenged the global public health community to confront a novel epidemic that spread rapidly from its origins in southern China until it had reached more than 25 other countries within a matter of months. In addition to the number of patients infected with the SARS virus, the disease had profound economic and political repercussions in many of the affected regions. Recent reports of isolated new SARS cases and a fear that the disease could reemerge and spread have put public health officials on high alert for any indications of possible new outbreaks. This report examines the response to SARS by public health systems in individual countries, the biology of the SARS coronavirus and related coronaviruses in animals, the economic and political fallout of the SARS epidemic, quarantine law and other public health measures that apply to combating infectious diseases, and the role of international organizations and scientific cooperation in halting the spread of SARS. The report provides an illuminating survey of findings from the epidemic, along with an assessment of what might be needed in order to contain any future outbreaks of SARS or other emerging infections.

Download or read book Ebola written by Paul Richards and published by Zed Books Ltd.. This book was released on 2016-09-15 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shortlisted for the Fage and Oliver Prize 2018 From December 2013, the largest Ebola outbreak in history swept across West Africa, claiming thousands of lives in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. By the middle of 2014, the international community was gripped by hysteria. Experts grimly predicted that millions would be infected within months, and a huge international control effort was mounted to contain the virus. Yet paradoxically, by this point the disease was already going into decline in Africa itself. So why did outside observers get it so wrong? Paul Richards draws on his extensive first-hand experience in Sierra Leone to argue that the international community’s panicky response failed to take account of local expertise and common sense. Crucially, Richards shows that the humanitarian response to the disease was most effective in those areas where it supported these initiatives and that it hampered recovery when it ignored or disregarded local knowledge.

Download or read book The Economic Impact of the 2014 Ebola Epidemic written by The World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2014-11-26 with total page 109 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Beyond the terrible toll in human lives and suffering, the Ebola epidemic currently afflicting West Africa is already having a measurable economic impact. This report provides a systematic analysis of the channels of economic impact and the likely magnitude of that impact for Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, as well as West Africa as a whole.

Download or read book The Imperative of Development written by Geoffrey Gertz and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2017-09-12 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: " The achievements and legacy of the Wolfensohn Center for Development at Brookings The Imperative of Development highlights the research and policy analysis produced by the Wolfensohn Center for Development at Brookings. The Center, which operated from 2006 to 2011, was the first home at Brookings for research on international development. It sought to help identify effective solutions to key development challenges in order to create a more prosperous and stable world. Founded by James and Elaine Wolfensohn, the Center’s mission was to “to create knowledge that leads to action with real, scaled-up, and lasting development impact.” This volume reviews the Center’s achievements and lasting legacy, combining highlights of its most important research with new essays that examine the context and impact of that research. Six primary research streams of the Wolfensohn Center’s work are highlighted in The Imperative of Development: the shifting structure of the world economy in the twenty-first century; the challenge of scaling up the impact of development interventions; the effectiveness of development assistance; how to promote economic and social inclusion for Middle Eastern youth; the case for investing in early child development; and the need for global governance reform. In each chapter, a scholar associated with the particular research topic provides an overview of the issue and its broader context, then describes the Center’s work on the topic and the subsequent influence and impact of these efforts. The Imperative of Development chronicles the growth and expansion of the first center for development research in Brookings’s 100-year history and traces how the seeds of this initiative continue to bear fruit. "

Download or read book Global Health Risk Framework written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2016-05-06 with total page 141 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the 2014 Ebola outbreak many public- and private-sector leaders have seen a need for improved management of global public health emergencies. The effects of the Ebola epidemic go well beyond the three hardest-hit countries and beyond the health sector. Education, child protection, commerce, transportation, and human rights have all suffered. The consequences and lethality of Ebola have increased interest in coordinated global response to infectious threats, many of which could disrupt global health and commerce far more than the recent outbreak. In order to explore the potential for improving international management and response to outbreaks the National Academy of Medicine agreed to manage an international, independent, evidence-based, authoritative, multistakeholder expert commission. As part of this effort, the Institute of Medicine convened four workshops in summer of 2015 to inform the commission report. The presentations and discussions from the Workshop on Research and Development of Medical Products are summarized in this report.

Download or read book Global Epidemics Local Implications written by Kevin J. A. Thomas and published by Johns Hopkins University Press. This book was released on 2019-12-17 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How fear and stigma affected the lives of African immigrants during the global Ebola epidemic—and the resilient ways in which immigrant communities responded. In December 2013, a series of Ebola infections in Meliandou, Guinea, set off a chain of events culminating in the world's largest Ebola epidemic. Concerns about the virus in the United States reached a peak when Thomas Duncan, a Liberian national visiting family in Dallas, became the first person to be diagnosed with Ebola and die of the disease on US soil. In Global Epidemics, Local Implications, Kevin J. A. Thomas highlights the complex ways in which disease outbreaks that begin in one part of the world affect the lives of immigrants in another. Drawing on information from a community survey, participant observations, government documents, and newspapers, Thomas examines how African immigrants were negatively affected by public backlash and their agency and resilience in responding to the consequences of epidemic. Ultimately, this book shows how these responses underscore the importance of immigrant resources for developing public health interventions.

Download or read book Democratization and Human Security in Postwar Sierra Leone written by Joseph J. Bangura and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-04-29 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This edited collection is the first book-length project to undertake a multidisciplinary study of democratization and human security in the post war nation of Sierra Leone. The overarching theme is there is synergy of democratization and human security which makes it imperative for the state to foster and enhance the realization of these concepts in postwar Sierra Leone. The book is divided into two broad thematic sections. The first section deals with democratization with a critical examination of the creation and instrumentality of institutions largely considered a necessity for democracy to take hold in a country. The second section delineates human security or the lack thereof in key areas of political, social and economic life. Though the book is specific to Sierra Leone, African countries and indeed countries transitioning to democracy around the world, scholars and practitioners of postwar or democratic transition studies would benefit from the concepts expounded in this collection.

Download or read book Socio cultural Dimensions of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Africa written by Godfrey B. Tangwa and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-08-16 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume examines the most important socio-cultural, political, economic, and policy issues related to emerging infectious diseases in Africa. The volume covers the work of the Global Emerging Pathogens Treatment Consortium (GET); it looks at the challenges of science education and communication in Africa, the global health and governance of pandemics and epidemics, and more. It looks beyond such threats as Ebola, SARS, and Zika to consider the ways communities have sought to contain these and other deadly pathogens. The chapters provide a better understanding of a global health problem from an African perspective, which help clarify to readers why some responses have worked while others have not. Overall, the volume captures the state of the art, science, preparedness, and evolution of a topic important to the health of Africa and the world. It has a broad appeal across disciplines, from medical science and biomedical research, through research ethics, regulation and governance, science and health communication, social sciences, and is also of interest to general readers.

Download or read book Exploring Lessons Learned from a Century of Outbreaks written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-07-05 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In November 2018, an ad hoc planning committee at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine planned two sister workshops held in Washington, DC, to examine the lessons from influenza pandemics and other major outbreaks, understand the extent to which the lessons have been learned, and discuss how they could be applied further to ensure that countries are sufficiently ready for future pandemics. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from both workshops.

Download or read book Contagious written by Priscilla Wald and published by Duke University Press. This book was released on 2008-01-09 with total page 396 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: DIVShows how narratives of contagion structure communities of belonging and how the lessons of these narratives are incorporated into sociological theories of cultural transmission and community formation./div

Download or read book Global Health and the Future Role of the United States written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2017-10-05 with total page 385 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: While much progress has been made on achieving the Millenium Development Goals over the last decade, the number and complexity of global health challenges has persisted. Growing forces for globalization have increased the interconnectedness of the world and our interdependency on other countries, economies, and cultures. Monumental growth in international travel and trade have brought improved access to goods and services for many, but also carry ongoing and ever-present threats of zoonotic spillover and infectious disease outbreaks that threaten all. Global Health and the Future Role of the United States identifies global health priorities in light of current and emerging world threats. This report assesses the current global health landscape and how challenges, actions, and players have evolved over the last decade across a wide range of issues, and provides recommendations on how to increase responsiveness, coordination, and efficiency â€" both within the U.S. government and across the global health field.

Download or read book HIV Exceptionalism written by Adia Benton and published by U of Minnesota Press. This book was released on 2015-02-15 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: WINNER, 2017 RACHEL CARSON PRIZE, SOCIETY FOR THE SOCIAL STUDIES OF SCIENCE In 2002, Sierra Leone emerged from a decadelong civil war. Seeking international attention and development aid, its government faced a dilemma. Though devastated by conflict, Sierra Leone had a low prevalence of HIV. However, like most African countries, it stood to benefit from a large influx of foreign funds specifically targeted at HIV/AIDS prevention and care. What Adia Benton chronicles in this ethnographically rich and often moving book is how one war-ravaged nation reoriented itself as a country suffering from HIV at the expense of other, more pressing health concerns. During her fieldwork in the capital, Freetown, a city of one million people, at least thirty NGOs administered internationally funded programs that included HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Benton probes why HIV exceptionalism—the idea that HIV is an exceptional disease requiring an exceptional response—continues to guide approaches to the epidemic worldwide and especially in Africa, even in low-prevalence settings. In the fourth decade since the emergence of HIV/AIDS, many today are questioning whether the effort and money spent on this health crisis has in fact helped or exacerbated the problem. HIV Exceptionalism does this and more, asking, what are the unanticipated consequences that HIV/AIDS development programs engender?

Download or read book The Butterfly Defect written by Ian Goldin and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2015-10-20 with total page 320 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How to better manage systemic risks—from cyber attacks and pandemics to financial crises and climate change—in a globalized world The Butterfly Defect addresses the widening gap between the new systemic risks generated by globalization and their effective management. It shows how the dynamics of turbo-charged globalization has the potential and power to destabilize our societies. Drawing on the latest insights from a wide variety of disciplines, Ian Goldin and Mike Mariathasan provide practical guidance for how governments, businesses, and individuals can better manage globalization and risk. Goldin and Mariathasan demonstrate that systemic risk issues are now endemic everywhere—in supply chains, pandemics, infrastructure, ecology and climate change, economics, and politics. Unless we address these concerns, they will lead to greater protectionism, xenophobia, nationalism, and, inevitably, deglobalization, rising inequality, conflict, and slower growth. The Butterfly Defect shows that mitigating uncertainty and risk in an interconnected world is an essential task for our future.

Download or read book Risk Communication for the Future written by Mathilde Bourrier and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-06-27 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The conventional approach to risk communication, based on a centralized and controlled model, has led to blatant failures in the management of recent safety related events. In parallel, several cases have proved that actors not thought of as risk governance or safety management contributors may play a positive role regarding safety. Building on these two observations and bridging the gap between risk communication and safety practices leads to a new, more societal perspective on risk communication, that allows for smart risk governance and safety management. This book is Open Access under a CC-BY licence.

Download or read book Ebola Culture and Politics The Anthropology of an Emerging Disease written by Barry S. Hewlett and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The case studies in this new, acclaimed series illustrate the great value of anthropology in understanding and addressing problems faced by human societies around the world. Each case study examines an issue of socially recognized importance in the historical, geographical, and cultural context of a particular region of the world and includes comparative analysis to highlight not only the local effects of globalization but also the global dimensions of the issue. With readable narrative styles and an engagement with people that goes beyond that of observer and researcher, these anthropologists describe how their work has implications for advocacy, community action, and policy formation. Book jacket.