Interdisciplinary perspectives on the science, politics, and ethics of
the 2013-2015 Ebola virus disease outbreak.
The 2013-2015 outbreak of the Ebola virus disease (EVD) was a public
health disaster: 28,575 infections and 11,313 deaths (as of October
2015), devastating the countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone; a
slow and mismanaged international response; and sensationalistic media
coverage, seized upon by politicians to justify wrongheaded policy. And
yet there were also promising developments that may improve future
responses to infectious disease epidemics: the UN Security Council's
first involvement in a public health event; a series of promising
clinical treatments and vaccines for EVD; and recognition of the need
for a global public health system to deal with epidemics that cross
national borders. This volume offers a range of perspectives on these
and other lessons learned, with essays on the science, politics, and
ethics of the Ebola outbreak.
The contributors discuss topics including the virology and management of
EVD in both rich and poor nations; the spread of the disease (with an
essay by a leader of Médecins Sans Frontières); racist perceptions of
West Africa; mainstream and social media responses to Ebola; and the
ethical issue of whether to run clinical trials of experimental
treatments during an outbreak.
**Contributors
**Christian L. Althaus, Daniel G. Bausch, Adia Benton, Michael J.
Connor, Jr., Kim Yi Dionne, Nicholas G. Evans, Morenike Oluwatoyin
Folayan, Stephen Goldstein, Bridget Haire, Patricia C. Henwood, Kelly
Hills, Cyril Ibe, Marjorie Kruvand, Lisa M. Lee, Maimuna S. Majumder,
Alexandra L. Phelan, Annette Rid, Cristine Russell, Lara Schwarz, Laura
Seay, Michael Selgelid, Tara C. Smith, Armand Sprecher
