Thread by @RanuDhillon, 1/ W/Ebola in West Africa, there was a term 'Ebola business' that [...]

Ranu Dhillon

RanuDhillon

1/ W/Ebola in West Africa, there was a term 'Ebola business' that referred to the idea that Ebola was either made up or overblown & used as a way to enrich the already rich

We're facing our own version of 'Ebola business' w/the questioning of & antagonism to COVID strategies https://twitter.com/AbraarKaran/status/1260408433531994114

https://twitter.com/AbraarKaran/status/1260408433531994114

2/ When Ebola hit DRC, the same term- despite being ~4500 miles away- was used for the same idea

That is to say that we - the US/West - are not exempt from the common human reactions to epidemics that have happened in recent outbreaks in other places https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/28355/to-defeat-the-ebola-outbreak-congo-must-also-overcome-popular-mistrust

‘Ebola Business’: How Mistrust Is Fueling Attacks on Health Workers in Eastern Congo

For over a year, the town of Beni in eastern Congo has been at the center of the second-largest Ebola outbreak in history. Efforts to fight the virus’ spread have been hampered by growing mistrust of...

https://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/28355/to-defeat-the-ebola-outbreak-congo-must-also-overcome-popular-mistrust

3/ Just like when we faced similar distrust & antagonism w/Ebola response in other settings, we need to figure out how to address 'rumors' & reframe messaging & recommendations for COVID in the US/West

This is not a passive endeavor & requires expertise & ACTIVE engagement

4/ In Guinea, we had people like @AnokoJulienne & Cheikh Niang- anthropologists -who understood context & built bridges w/communities to convey what was happening & needed to happen

It's arrogant to think we don't need the same analysis of our 'anthropological' reaction to COVID

5/ We can't let that reaction happen haphazardly just like we didn't when responding to Ebola in Guinea or DRC

We need to engage people's misunderstandings & work on re=shaping them to ensure appropriate habits & choices are taken up to curb COVID's spread

6/ That's more important than ever given the political backdrop in this country...but also not impossible

We overcame something more severe when we stopped Ebola in Guinea - fresh from autocracy & a hotly contested election - just a few years ago... https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1508413

Community Trust and the Ebola Endgame | NEJM

Perspective from The New England Journal of Medicine — Community Trust and the Ebola Endgame

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1508413

7/ It's time for other voices. Many are saying & will continue to say what's needed in terms of technical -epidemiology, testing, etc - strategy

We also need anthropologists, social thinkers, politicians to address this epidemic & frame what we need to do TOGETHER to take it on

You can follow @RanuDhillon.

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