On October 8th, an email was distributed to all students and staff of Connecticut College to address Ebola and Enterovirus 68. The virus, which has been making international headlines, became especially under national radar as a man from Texas was diagnosed with the virus at an American hospital. Although outbreak of the Virus has been detected mainly in West Africa in regions including Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, the virus has been gaining worldwide attention after cases have been confirmed in both Spain and the United States.
In response to recent detection of the virus, mainstream media has addressed the growing epidemic with little short of hysteria. It appears as though nearly every media source these days is struggling to cover any other news topic. Specifically, in the past week, controversy has erupted over potential travel bans and and the social, political and medical connotations posed by these restrictions. The president of the Center for Disease Control has expressed a strong opposition to these potential bans and in a recent statement declared, “We don’t want to isolate parts of the world, or people who aren’t sick, because that’s going to drive patients with Ebola underground, making it infinitely more difficult to address the outbreak. When a wildfire breaks out we don’t fence it off. We go in to extinguish it before one of the random sparks sets off another outbreak somewhere else.”
Other sources confirm that while many Americans are similarly opposed to a ban, the majority according to a recent NBC news survey are in fact in favor of travel restrictions from countries experiencing outbreak. In response to these concerns, the CDC confirmed new screening procedures at 5 main United States airports to check individuals traveling from high-risk countries for fever and other symptoms. These precautions are likely to further reduce risk within the nation and prevent further outbreak.
Unfortunately, Ebola itself does not show signs of disappearing anytime soon. According to the World Health Organization, over 8,000 individuals are currently infected with the virus and over 3,000 patients have died thus far. While experimental medication has been tested on the Virus, there is currently no known successful treatment available. Scientists continue to scramble to find a cure as these numbers continue to rise. Although risk of contracting Ebola within the United States is very low, many remain concerned about the risks of the Virus and the international threat which it may pose.
In contrast to frantic reports distributed by national news media, the agenda of the email sent by Conn College officials was clearly not to promote panic, but rather to educate the Conn community about how they may (or may not) be affected by the virus. The email stated, “As news of Ebola and Enterovirus 68 continues to make national and international headlines, I want to assure you that the risk of contracting either illness at Connecticut College is low, but the College is taking steps to educate our community and has protocols in place to halt the spread of infectious disease on campus.” Similar to the approach of the national government, the Connecticut College community appears to be approaching the epidemic with an abundance of precaution and care. “We’re on a college campus in Connecticut so as of now, it’s likely not a direct threat to us. However, cases of the virus have been detected in D.C. and California, so it is something we definitely need to be aware of,” says student Laura Lundegard ‘18. Although it is true that the virus poses no current threat to those within the college, it is clear that if the situation were to progress, health officials are ready to proceed if further means become necessary.