EBOLA

Its very name strikes FEAR into the hearts of men!

And it SHOULD….. 90% fatal if untreated and only 60% fatal with treatment. This last week Ebola has been in the news with a death count of over 800 so far, I bet that it is actually higher. Then over the weekend one of two healthcare workers contracted it and one of them has already been flown here to the US. According to the news people our public opinion was strongly against allowing the importation of the 2 healthcare workers to one of our best CDC hospitals. Rightly so…. Perhaps. Consider this on the other hand, thi8s may well be the first time someone with the disease has come here BUT it is not the first time that the infective agent has been brought into our country. Both the CDC and our military bio warfare facilities have active samples that they have been experimenting with and in some cases turning into a weapon. How do you think that CDC has serum to use to treat the 2 healthcare workers?

As a practical matter our government is going to do whatever they jolly well want to do and we the people can not really stop them. At least so far the Ebola bug is not truly all that contagious. YET.

So what do we the general public do in case the bug starts spreading here in the US? Same thing as we can do for most anything. Stay away from sick people unless you are their care giver. Beware of others body fluids. Wash your hands with plain soap and water and a lot of it. That alcohol gel stuff is not all that it is cracked up to be and the antibacterial soap isn’t all that good either. If the sick person is coughing or sneezing have them wear a mask to protect everyone else – you can wear one too if it makes you feel better. Ideally a glass walled sick room [or a green house] so that a lot of direct sun light can get to most sides of the treatment area and patient so that the UV light can help disinfect the area and the air. The more filtered air flow that you can provide the better. – is possible the air should be filtered entering and leaving the sick bay area. Limit the exposure to sick folks.

Keep the patient clean, dry, well hydrated and nourished. Keep your local environment clean and well ventilated.

You may consider making quarantine signs a head of time to warn others that you have sick folks in your house.

Some things to consider stocking include;
Chlorine bleach to disinfect things
Medical gloves of whatever fits most of your people
N 95 masks – these really should be fitted to you but most folks wont do that
A large supply of linens, towels and wash clothes
Safety goggles or face shields
Soap [bar, dish and laundry]
Wash basins
Outdoor drying lines so that the sunlight can get to the laundry

What else can you think of along with this?