Global Perspectives Individual Report
Topic: Health and Disease in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
Dominic 7M
Introduction:
Ebola is a rare but severe illness to humans, Ebola is often fatal. People get affected with Ebola by
touching infected animals, body fluids such as urine and saliva, objects that have the fluids such as clothes
and bedsheets. The symptoms are vomiting, feeling tired, muscle and joint pain, eye pain and vision
problems, headache, weight gain, belly pain and loss of appetite, hair loss and skin problems, trouble
sleeping, memory loss, hearing loss, and depression and anxiety (World Health Organization, 2023).
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has had the most Ebola cases since 1976. Experts theorize
that heavy forested areas with infected fruits are the reason for the outbreaks (Mercy Corps, 2019). I
chose this topic because there are a lot of Ebola cases in DRC and many people are struggling with it.
Research Questions (RQ):
● Should quarantines be implemented as the primary measure to contain Ebola outbreaks?
● Is a change of strategy necessary to contain the epidemic?
● Should experimental treatments for Ebola be prioritized and widely distributed during Congo
outbreaks despite unknown long term effects?
Global consequences and effects:
Since Ebola was introduced by infected fruits and animals like bats, it can also be transmitted to people by
an infected person’s body fluids such as urine and saliva, and also infected animals when they are being
cooked or touched. If possible when the virus isn’t contracted that well, people would start to transmit it
to more people and infected ones will move out of DRC to another country and they also transmit it like
what happened to the 2014 to 2016 outbreak where people affected by the virus moved out of the border
and started to spread the virus to other countries in Africa (World Health Organization, 2023).
National Perspective:
The local perspective on Ebola in DRC has fear and confusion, with a lot of people believing it was some
curse or some divine punishment of health and external aid, while other people feel suspicious of health
interventions and external aid, also some resisted measures like vaccination and safe burials because of
cultural practices. Misinformation spread rapidly, and trust in health authorities was low. Communities
emphasized on the need for clearer communication and more local involvement in response efforts to
overcome these issues and to improve safety measures (Muzembo et al, 2020).
What can be done:
What can be done to stop the problem is that the government should prioritize quarantine, they should
isolate the individual in a good healthcare facility, like a government controlled healthcare facility, they
also should change their strategies on vaccination because the SAGE (Strategic Advisory Group of
Experts on Immunization at the World Health Organization) experts recommended changing the strategy
for vaccination in DRC so that a lot more people can be vaccinated (Medicines Sans Frontiers, 2019).
Also the WHO (World Health Organization) has made strong recommendations for two monoclonal
antibody treatments: mAb114 (Ansuvimab; Ebanga) and REGN-EB3 (Inmazeb) (World Health
Organization, 2022).
Conclusion and my response:
On my researches, I mostly researched about quarantine and the effects on Ebola. I say that yes they need
to prioritize quarantines and change their strategy, even for the quarantine they still need good healthcare
facilities, I highly recommend that the people should stay in a government controlled healthcare facility
like what is shown on the essay. Also I learned about the transmission and the perspectives. I agree to the
RQ’s that I’ve stated.
Works Cited:
Muzembo, Basilua Andre et al. “Local Perspectives on Ebola during Its Tenth Outbreak in DR Congo: A
Nationwide Qualitative Study.” PLOS Medicine, vol. 17, no. 10, 2020,
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7580967/.
Mercy Corps. “African Countries Fighting Ebola Outbreaks.” Mercy Corps, 6 Mar. 2019,
https://www.mercycorps.org/blog/ebola-outbreaks-africa-guide/chapter-3.
Médecins Sans Frontières. “Not Contained, New Cases: Three Questions on Vaccines and the Ebola
Outbreak in DRC.” MSF, 6 Aug. 2019,
https://www.msf.org/not-contained-new-cases-three-questions-vaccines-and-ebola-outbreak-drc-democrat
ic-republic-congo.
World Health Organization. “WHO Makes New Recommendations for Ebola Treatments, Calls for
Improved Access.” WHO, 19 Aug. 2022,
https://www.who.int/news/item/19-08-2022-who-makes-new-recommendations-for-ebola-treatments—–c
alls-for-improved-access.
World Health Organization. “Ebola Virus Disease.” WHO, 23 May 2023,
https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ebola-virus-disease.
