Gaps in the System that May Contribute to the Spread of Ebola
The Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak emerged as a significant threat to the lives and safety of both the countries of West Africa and the overall global community. The deaths of a significant number of citizens of West African countries might have been averted if several systematic and organizational issues have been implemented promptly. Unlike countries of equatorial Africa, West African states had never experienced EVD before 2014 and were unprepared to identify, treat, or epidemic management of the disease (World Health Organization [WHO], 2015a).
The overall underdeveloped and underfinanced system of health care in these countries significantly contributes to the spread of the illness. In particular, the public health system lacks funding, a scientific base, and experts. Also, “ineffective diagnostic and case management services” obstruct the opportunity to detect the first cases of EVD in time and prevent its international spread (Shrivastava, 2016, p. 105). Also, the unproductive cooperation of facilities and organizations at the community level complicates the possibility of united adherence to the same pattern of dealing with an outbreak and threatens the success of the implemented interventions.
Strategy for Addressing Ebola within the Structure of the Health System
Considering the factors that contribute to the spread of EVD in West African countries, the strategy for addressing the disease should be concentrated on the elimination of the identified problems. In general, the overall health care infrastructure of the developing countries has to be improved by means of international support and governmental programs. Firstly, scientific evidence-based health care needs to be advanced, which may be achieved through the attraction of foreign experts and the improvement of educational efforts. Secondly, better management and technology implementation is needed to ensure effective diagnostics and disease management.
For that matter, new laboratories need to be launched, as well as the number of facilities specializing in infectious diseases should be increased. Thirdly, community-based initiatives need to be implemented to ensure sufficient local work on the identification and treatment of EVD.
Fourthly, the countries of Western Africa need to develop an effective preventative program. All countries must be “ready to safely and effectively detect, investigate, manage and report potential Ebola cases” and act within the coordinated guidelines (WHO, 2015b, p. 12). Finally, an effective technology-driven and internationally supported monitoring program is required to ensure virus transmission surveillance (WHO, 2015a). All these steps are aimed at the strategic restructuring of the current health system of the countries significantly inclined to Ebola outbreaks. The implementation of the strategy requires proper financing for the effective achievement of anticipated results.
Options for Financing the Strategy
The issue of Ebola outbreaks in countries with ineffective health care systems imposes significant safety concerns for the whole global community due to the high level of transmission of EVD. Therefore, it is in the interests of international organizations to supply necessary resources for West African countries to enforce the strategy implementation. One of the options to attract financial aid to the region is via the Multi-Partner Trust Fund (WHO, 2015b). Also, the funding might be provided via national donations of the developed countries, as well as the World Bank and CDC fund (WHO, 2016). As for the community-based interventions, the governments of the countries of West Africa need to allocate the necessary budget to ensure effective local work.
References
Shrivastava, S. R., Shrivastava, P. S., & Ramasamy, J. (2016). Ebola outbreak in West Africa: Bridging the gap between the public health authorities and the community. Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research, 21(1), 105-106.
World Health Organization. (2015a). Factors that contributed to the undetected spread of the Ebola virus and impeded rapid containment. Web.
World Health Organization. (2016). West Africa Ebola outbreak: Funding. Web.
World Health Organization. (2015b). WHO strategic response plan: West Africa Ebola outbreak. Web.