Skip to main content

Search

pece_annotation_1473907571

ciera.williams

This study examined the risk of acquiring Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) by healthcare workers in the setting of general hospitals and isolation units. By looking retrospectively at the Ebola Outbreak in Sierra Leone, the relative levels of risk to healthcare workers were computed and compared. The reasoning for these levels was also examined through interviews of surviving workers and the families/associates/colleagues of the deceased workers. The interviews reviewed common actions (and lack there of) for affected workers. This revealed certain themes that should be visited when reveising/creating hospital infection prevention and control policies.

pece_annotation_1474777919

ciera.williams

The Act is hailed by many as important in supporting the emergency services community. In 2015, the Act was reauthorized for an additional 75 years of support, something many fought for as the deadline approached for the renewal and nothing had been discussed. Numerous articles cite the importance of the policy in protecting and supporting victims of the attack's lasting affects. 

pece_annotation_1475393298

ciera.williams

The author, Didier Fassin, is an anthropologist and sociologist at the Institute for Advanced Study. He is a professor of Political Science and orginially a physician in internal medicine. He researches public health and "medical anthropology" looking at AIDs epidemiology, mortality disparities, and global at large. He is hailed as the developer of "moral anthropology, which looks at moral judgement's effect on everyday life and international relations. He conducted research in Senegal, Ecuador, and France, focusing on power and inequality issues. He was also the CP for MSF from 1999-2003. 

pece_annotation_1481686092

ciera.williams
Annotation of

If this policy gains support, it can spread to other agencies and allow for many people to be armed on medical scenes. This can negatively affect the image of EMS, as people are already upset with the police. All it takes is one bad incident, and suddenly all EMTs will be painted negatively. Its a slippery slope. 

pece_annotation_1473043717

ciera.williams

The program is divided into three sub-programs: Radiation Disaster Medicine, Radioactivity Environmental Protection, and Radioactivity Social Recovery. The Radiation Disaster Medicine course is a four year PhD program, for those who already have professional degrees (medicine, pharmacy, dentistry, etc.) and master’s degrees (medical physics). The Radioactivity Environmental Protection course is a five year program for students who have completed a bachelors or masters in a related field. The Radioactivity Social Recovery course is a five year program for students with a bachelors or master’s. The curriculum is broken down into common subjects, specialized subjects, fieldwork, and internships. 

pece_annotation_1473909621

ciera.williams

At least one further study has been conducted using this data. A more focussed paper on the Kenema District in Sierra Leone was written, addressing the staggering number of cases with infected healthcare workers. The paper is titled "Facors Underlying Ebola Virus Infection Among healthcare Workers, Kenema, Sierra Leone, 2014-2015."  The paper reached similar conlusions as the original one, with a need for better practices in infection control and prevention.