Ebola is less contagious than the flu. Fact.

[Marrah_G]

14. People are freaked out because it's a scary new thing

Also they picture people bleeding out of all their orafices (usually not the case) which is scary as hell. Also they see the numbers and the percentages of deaths and they don't know enough to factor in why the numbers and percentages are that high. The papers quote 90% for the Zaire strain....which, in the past has been the case. BUT those cases were in very rural areas with substandard medical care and burial rituals and superstitions that increased the numbers.

When I first read the Hot Zone I was pretty freaked out too. But then I read a lot more books on Viruses and those who work to keep us safe from them and I realized that even though Ebola generates a real gut reaction/fear in people there are many other viruses and bacteria that people should be concerned with.

Ebola spreads due to poverty and all the things that come with poverty. Transportation is often an issue. Lack of proper medical facilities and staff, proper education to dispell myths, difficulty in tracking people since modes of communication are not the same as in wealthier countries. Not everyone has TVs, phones, computers, etc. Fear of hospitals is a very real thing, distrust of healthcare workers is also.

Knowledge is the best way to conquer fear, but it only works if people are willing to learn about what they do not know.