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Book part
Publication date: 30 November 2020

Peter Mameli and Darryl Bobb

Eradicating Ebola from West Africa was struggled with from 2014 through 2016. While at first inefficient and ineffective, undeniable progress was made in responding to the outbreak

Abstract

Eradicating Ebola from West Africa was struggled with from 2014 through 2016. While at first inefficient and ineffective, undeniable progress was made in responding to the outbreak once countries and organizations steeled themselves for the task at hand. A separate outbreak occurred concurrently in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) during this period. This episode marked the seventh time that DRC had dealt with the virus over a roughly 45-year span. In 2017, there was an eighth occurrence. Moreover, in 2018, DRC faced its ninth and tenth outbreaks. Comparing the experiences of countries in West Africa facing the disease for the first time, with a state that has a long history addressing its impact, is offered here as a means of better understanding successful disease management where public health epidemics are concerned. Results indicate that early investment in cultivating disease-specific practices, combined with establishing cooperative networks of actors across levels of political response, enables improved mitigation and response during outbreaks.

Details

International Case Studies in the Management of Disasters
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83982-187-5

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 1 October 2018

Colin McInnes

This chapter examines how established media – that is, print, TV and radio sources which pre-existed the popularisation of social media – use social media to disseminate content…

Abstract

This chapter examines how established media – that is, print, TV and radio sources which pre-existed the popularisation of social media – use social media to disseminate content. Specifically it examines the manner in which three UK media sources – BBC News, The Guardian and the Daily Mail – used Twitter during the 2014–2015 Ebola crisis. It asks five key questions concerning: the balance between factual reporting and opinion or comment; the degree to which it shifted attention to specific events within the context of the outbreak; whether the dialogical potential of social media was exploited; the degree to which social media acted as a signpost to more detailed information elsewhere, or existed as independent content; and the degree of media reflexivity. It concludes that established media used this new technology within their existing paradigms for reporting rather than exploiting some of its more innovative characteristics.

Details

Social Media Use in Crisis and Risk Communication
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-269-1

Keywords

Abstract

Details

American Life Writing and the Medical Humanities: Writing Contagion
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83909-673-0

Article
Publication date: 20 August 2018

Lu An, Chuanming Yu, Xia Lin, Tingyao Du, Liqin Zhou and Gang Li

The purpose of this paper is to identify salient topic categories and outline their evolution patterns and temporal trends in microblogs on a public health emergency across…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to identify salient topic categories and outline their evolution patterns and temporal trends in microblogs on a public health emergency across different stages. Comparisons were also examined to reveal the similarities and differences between those patterns and trends on microblog platforms of different languages and from different nations.

Design/methodology/approach

A total of 459,266 microblog entries about the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014 on Twitter and Weibo were collected for nine months after the inception of the outbreak. Topics were detected by the latent Dirichlet allocation model and classified into several categories. The daily tweets were analyzed with the self-organizing map technique and labeled with the most salient topics. The investigated time span was divided into three stages, and the most salient topic categories were identified for each stage.

Findings

In total, 14 salient topic categories were identified in microblogs about the Ebola outbreak and were summarized as increasing, decreasing, fluctuating or ephemeral types. The topical evolution patterns of microblogs and temporal trends for topic categories vary on different microblog platforms. Twitter users were keen on the dynamics of the Ebola outbreak, such as status description, secondary events and so forth, while Weibo users focused on background knowledge of Ebola and precautions.

Originality/value

This study revealed evolution patterns and temporal trends of microblog topics on a public health emergency. The findings can help administrators of public health emergencies and microblog communities work together to better satisfy information needs and physical demands by the public when public health emergencies are in progress.

Details

Online Information Review, vol. 42 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1468-4527

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 July 2020

Joseph Kimuli Balikuddembe

This paper attempts to discuss the synergies between the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and Ebola preparedness and response – with a specific outlook about how the five (5…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper attempts to discuss the synergies between the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and Ebola preparedness and response – with a specific outlook about how the five (5) targets in SDG.3 can be prioritized and integrated into the measures taken against the battle of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic Congo (DRC) as well as any other sporadic health disasters and emergencies elsewhere.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on the published literature, including reports, peer-reviewed articles, statistical data and relevant documents identified from authenticated sources.

Findings

Sustainable development, which is the nitty-gritty of SDGs, is underscored as a germane in almost all regional and international frameworks. However, as traditional natural hazards persist, alongside the persistence of civil conflicts and instability, socioeconomic challenges such as EVD pose serious hindrances to SDGs, and achieving them by 2030 might be a deferred dream, especially in low- and middle-income countries such as DRC.

Practical implications

This paper will help to inform the decisions of bureaucrats at different levels, especially those aimed at promoting and integrating health into sustainable development.

Originality/value

The recent 2018 EVD outbreaks in DRC, which galvanized the regional and global attention, call for an approach that elucidates an interaction between the SDGs and countermeasures of responding to this deadly disease in the DRC and elsewhere.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 29 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 6 December 2018

Nicola Petrosillo and Rok ivljak

The largest ever outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD), which began in December 2013, profoundly impacted not only the West African countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia…

Abstract

The largest ever outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD), which began in December 2013, profoundly impacted not only the West African countries of Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, and to a lesser extent Nigeria, but also the rest of the world because some patients needed to be managed in high-resource countries. As of March 29, 2016, there were 28,616 confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of EVD reported in Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone during the outbreak, with 11,310 deaths (case fatality rate of 39.5%). An unprecedented number of healthcare workers and professionals, including physicians, nurses, logistic and administrative personnel, housekeepers, epidemiologists, statisticians, psychologists, sociologists, and ethics experts in many countries, were directly or indirectly involved in the care of EVD patients.

The provision of medical care to critically ill EVD patients would have been challenging in any setting but was especially so in the remote and resource-limited areas where patients were stricken by EVD. Limited health personnel, medical supplies, and equipment, along with inadequate knowledge and skills for minimizing the risks of transmission to healthcare workers, could have led to the de-prioritization of patient care. However, ethical considerations demanded aggressive patient care (intensive care, dialysis, central vascular catheter indwelling, etc.) to produce positive outcomes without increasing the risks to healthcare workers and caregivers.

A major ethical consideration was that healthcare workers have a double obligation: while providing the best medical care to improve EVD patient survival, with symptom relief and palliation as required, they must also protect themselves and minimize further transmission to others, including their colleagues. During the 2014–2015 EVD epidemic, another ethical and clinical problem arose in relation to the management of healthcare workers deployed in Africa who acquired EVD while caring for infected patients. As of June 24, 2015, a total of 65 individuals had been evacuated or repatriated worldwide from the EVD-affected countries, of whom 38 individuals were evacuated or repatriated to Europe. The need for evacuation and repatriation, together with associated ethical issues, is discussed in this chapter.

Details

Ethics and Integrity in Health and Life Sciences Research
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-572-8

Keywords

Open Access
Book part
Publication date: 1 October 2018

Harald Hornmoen and Colin McInnes

The chapter provides recommendations for key communicators’ social media use during pandemic threats. Recommendations are based on findings from two sets of case studies during…

Abstract

The chapter provides recommendations for key communicators’ social media use during pandemic threats. Recommendations are based on findings from two sets of case studies during the 2014–2015 outbreak of Ebola in West Africa: the use by authorities in UK and Norway during the 2014–2015 West African Ebola outbreak; and the use by established media in the UK.

Details

Social Media Use in Crisis and Risk Communication
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78756-269-1

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 August 2016

Nnamdi O. Madichie

Using a single case study of The Global Soap Project, a social enterprise founded by an African Immigrant resident in the USA, this study aims to explore and posit how lives could…

Abstract

Purpose

Using a single case study of The Global Soap Project, a social enterprise founded by an African Immigrant resident in the USA, this study aims to explore and posit how lives could be saved in Sub-Saharan Africa and especially so in light of the Ebola pandemic ravaging swathes of West African communities.

Design/methodology/approach

The qualitative study interrogates both the identity of a diasporic social entrepreneur in an attempt to develop a framework that links this concept to community entrepreneurship using a single case study.

Findings

With hindsight, The Global Soap Project has much to offer in terms of “saving lives” in these communities, as the battle against the Ebola virus calls for containment measures.

Research limitations/implications

While arguably limited in terms of being a single case, this study furthers the understanding on the role of social entrepreneurship in complementing community efforts and coping strategies for tackling pandemics such as the Ebola virus.

Social implications

Evidently, while vaccines are being fast-tracked, the spread of the virus can be curtailed through personal hygiene, and the project illustrates how an individual social enterprise can be leveraged at the community level.

Originality/value

The study provides avenues for future research enquiry into how single cases might be transformed into multiple cases, both within and across sectors, for the benefit of humanity in general and affected communities in particular.

Details

Journal of Enterprising Communities: People and Places in the Global Economy, vol. 10 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1750-6204

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 11 June 2021

Francis Mugizi, Jim Ayorekire and Joseph Obua

Purpose: This chapter analyzes how the COVID-19 pandemic has been managed and strategies put in place to rejuvenate the tourism industry in Uganda.Methodology: This chapter adopts…

Abstract

Purpose: This chapter analyzes how the COVID-19 pandemic has been managed and strategies put in place to rejuvenate the tourism industry in Uganda.

Methodology: This chapter adopts an integrated approach involving questionnaire survey and rapid situational analysis of documents to synthesize information on management of past disease outbreaks, COVID-19 and their impacts on tourism.

Findings: Uganda's tourism industry is vulnerable and has been exposed to past disease outbreaks such as Ebola and Marburg with varying effects on its image and performance. With the outbreak of COVID-19, the industry has drawn lessons from the previous responses and management experiences to cope with the effects of the pandemic.

Research Limitations: The main limitation in this chapter is the low response rate due to stringent lockdown conditions and limited access to respondents and official documents.

Practical Implications: This chapter recommends the need to mainstream strategies for crisis management into the tourism policy and development planning frameworks.

Originality/Value: This chapter provides a robust approach to analyze tourism industry's response, recovery and sustainability after disease outbreaks, pandemics and related crises in future.

Details

Tourism Destination Management in a Post-Pandemic Context
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80071-511-0

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 14 March 2023

Pierre Balamou and Paul R. Sachs

The devastating 2014 Ebola outbreak caused human and economic loss, but it also resulted in remarkable improvement in healthcare leadership. The impact is most evident in the…

Abstract

The devastating 2014 Ebola outbreak caused human and economic loss, but it also resulted in remarkable improvement in healthcare leadership. The impact is most evident in the affected West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. In this chapter, the Ebola experience is used as a framework to explore the essential elements of healthcare leadership, with particular attention to healthcare crises in under-resourced communities. Overall, healthcare leadership presents unique challenges. In common with leaders of other industries, healthcare leaders must inspire others, create a sense of purpose, make difficult decisions and collaborate with a range of people. But, because their focus is on complex systems that aim to improve people's physical and mental well-being, expectations of healthcare leaders are especially high. Their work can be a matter of life or death. For the leader in an under-resourced area, the challenge and expectations are even higher, particularly in the face of new or emerging health threats. The key to effective healthcare leadership is systems thinking which involves looking at the entire system of care as an integrated whole, rather than discrete parts that operate in isolation. Healthcare leaders must understand that health means mobilizing multisectoral knowledge and resources and applying innovative and multiactor approaches to prevent, detect and address health problems. Since the 2014 Ebola crisis, healthcare leaders are increasingly using a systems approach by looking at the culture of health systems, the impact of diseases locally and globally, and the applicability of health interventions in different environments. In the post-Ebola era, steps to strengthen the healthcare system are described which includes the roles of healthcare leaders. These steps include deployment of field epidemiologists and community health agents, community education and fuller use of the One Health Platform, which allows actors from different sectors (human health, animal health and environmental health) to collaborate. Finally, suggestions for healthcare leadership training are offered.

Details

African Leadership: Powerful Paradigms for the 21st Century
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-80117-046-8

Keywords

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