War on Ebola can be won, if human ingenuity again rises to the challenge
Thomas Tang says in our focus to contain the spread of the Ebola virus, we should heed the lessons of previous disease outbreaks and realise that cities can be resilient, if they are prepared
The Ebola virus that is infecting many people in West Africa is raising ripples of alarm across the rest of the world. The World Health Organisation seems disconcertingly powerless to halt the spread of the disease, which stokes fears of a global pandemic. As a learning species, what lessons can humankind take away from the tracks of this virus?
The Ebola virus was first identified in 1976, so it is no stranger to us. The lesson here is that man has tampered with nature yet again with dire results. Commonly found in wild animals, including primates, the Ebola virus has found a new nest in humans as the latter have encroached on natural habitats where wild animals live.
According to the WHO, in Africa, infection has been documented through the handling of infected wild animals found ill or dead, or in the rainforest. The problem is exacerbated by humans developing a taste for primate meat. Point one, be respectful of wildlife or you will pay the price.
So far, some 2,300 unfortunate people have died in the latest outbreak, out of a total of about 4,300 confirmed cases. Many of the cases reported are in rural townships in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.
The virus spreads among humans through direct contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected people, and through indirect contact with environments contaminated with such fluids. Thus, the authorities are understandably fearful of a spread of the virus into dense urban populations.
Today, as populations become more mobile across continents, it is inevitable that diseases will become as portable as suitcases and we have to prepare ourselves for this possibility. Lesson two, globalisation has its perils as well as its benefits.
But are crowded cities necessarily riskier than rural places? Cities tend to be better administered so health care treatment can be efficiently provided, infected neighbourhoods can be isolated quickly and emergency response teams mobilised.
In 2003, Hong Kong reluctantly became the centre of the world medical stage after the coronavirus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome spread to the city from the southern parts of the mainland and took root here. Through the bravery of medical staff and the ingenuity of scientists, the disease was eventually brought under control, though not before almost 300 people had died in Hong Kong.
This goes to show that, actually, cities are probably the best place to come up with solutions for pandemics. This is not to encourage the thought that it is a good thing for cities to be infected - rather, it is the fact that crises have the consequence of merging science and humanitarian values for the better.
People living in Hong Kong during that period went about their daily lives with nervousness and suspicion, with their faces masked. But, over time, public spiritedness and compassion prevailed, as citizen power took up the slack where government resources faltered.
Hong Kong emerged stronger and more united after the Sars crisis was declared over. This speaks to the resilience of cities. They are now moving beyond seeking plaudits for liveability and vibrancy, and learning how to stand the test of time and rise to the challenges of climate change, terrorism, cybercrime and others. Pandemics can be added to that list.
The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction has proposed 10 principles for disaster preparedness which Hong Kong and other cities would do well to heed, covering organisation and coordination to understand and reduce disaster risk, a budget for disaster-risk reduction, maintaining critical infrastructure, protecting natural ecosystems and providing support for recovery.
The last lesson to be highlighted is the need to treat sufferers with dignity. The ignominious images of an Ebola patient in Monrovia who escaped from a hospital being captured and bundled into the back of an ambulance by health workers clad in protective gear no doubt brought relief to members of the public, but the treatment of this person by the medical team was reprehensible. This is not to say that the medical profession is uncaring. There are many dedicated doctors and nurses risking their lives to fight Ebola and other diseases, but there is the antipathy that sometimes surfaces when doctors coldly deal with patients who are frightened, confused and suffering.
For the rest of us, Ebola is a reminder that we are not completely in control of our destinies, despite technology and scientific advancement. Increasing urbanisation means cities are going to get bigger and denser in the future. We must prepare for the worst and shore up institutions and infrastructure to build up our resilience.
Climate change is also affecting the environment. Hotter temperatures mean that natural paradigms will shift accordingly. For instance, we should expect cases of dengue fever and malaria to increase as breeding patterns of vectors become more intense.
Despite the current setbacks in the Ebola outbreak, there can be no doubt of the strength of the human spirit and our ability to overcome adversity. We should take heart from this and pray for the swift demise of this dreadful disease.
