Imani Carpenter
Brookman
Univ 112
11/11/2014
Any problem that affects the international community is going to come with a
multitude of suggested solutions, and the Ebola outbreak is no different. One of the
possible solutions to this problem is the use of public health measures to help the
international community. In the article “Ebola Declared Public Health Emergency” Erika
Check Hayden says these public health measures include “contact tracing and risk
education…ensuring funerals and burials are conducted so as to reduce the risk of
infections…and community awareness.”(Hayden). On August 8th the World Health
Organization declared this outbreak a public health emergency, which they define as “an
occurrence or imminent threat of an illness or health condition, caused by bioterrorism,
epidemic or, pandemic disease or (a) novel and highly fatal infectious agent or biological
toxin, that poses a substantial risk of a significant number of human facilities…”(WHO)
Some epidemiologist like Michael Osterholm of the University of Minnesota hope that
the WHO’s declaration will make the public focus on public-health measures rather than
experimental vaccines.(qtd. in Hayden). The use of these measures is cheaper, faster to
enact, easier to trust, and we know that they will work. Nonetheless they are far more
ethical to use than the alternative option of using experimental drugs. This solution is
ethical when analyzed through the utilitarian approach. Using public health measures will
ensure that more people are helped than being harmed. As noted by Santa Clara
University the utilitarian approach focuses on consequences; and this solution is working
to increase the number of people who do not come in contact with the disease and reduce
the amount of people exposed. (Velasquez et al.). If these measures are carried out
correctly then we will be able to isolate the people who have this deadly disease and
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Imani Carpenter
Brookman
Univ 112
11/11/2014
protect the people around them. This use of public health measures is not only the most
efficient solution to fighting Ebola but also the most ethical.
Most people would appreciate using public health measures over using
experimental drugs because it is monumentally cheaper. For example, Tekmira in
Burnbary, Canada received $140 million dollars from the US Department of Defense just
to fund the testing of their vaccine. (Reardon 520). Using measures like educating the
public and proper burial will cost a government virtually no money. These measures
being cheaper also use the utilitarian approach when looking at it ethically. This is
because close to no harm will be done to the respective governments bank accounts while
a vast amount of people will be able to be helped. Also because public health measures
cost very little to no money there will be no worry of running out of resources, like Heinz
Feldmann did in 2005 while developing a possible Ebola vaccine. (Reardon 520) The use
of public health measure has not only proved to an ethical solution, but also drastically
cheaper than the alternative of using experimental drugs.
Not only are these methods considerably cheaper than using experimental drugs
but also they are also easier to use. Using a vaccine would require physically taking a pill
or getting a shot while public health measures do not require very much work. The
countries where Ebola is most heavily present do not have the resources to be able to give
out shots and pills to the affected. In the Nature Science Journal article, “Ebola: Time to
Act”, it is mentioned that “the dysfunctional health-care infrastructure of the three
countries at the center of the outbreak- Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia, which are poor
and struggling to emerge from years of war – is simply not up to task.” (513:144). This
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Imani Carpenter
Brookman
Univ 112
11/11/2014
could also be seen as utilitarian ethics because if experimental drugs are being used it
would put pressure on the companies and countries distributing the drug, instead of
making them feel at ease. The pressure from using these drugs will be too hard for the
fragile countries to handle, and it would be easier for them to promote the use of public
health measures.
When dealing with the international community it is important to gain the trust of
the affected people. It would be easier for someone to trust something as simple as
washing your hands compared to getting a shot you know nothing about. Amesh Adalija
of the University of Pittsburg Medical Center in Pennsylvania says “These drugs don't
have an established safety record with humans, so it becomes much more
complicated.”(qtd. in Hayden). The trust of the people has already been compromised by
rumors suggesting the governments are harvesting organs and purposely trying to spread
this horrible disease. When looking at this ethically it still follows the trend of utilitarian
ethics; more good is done than harm by using public health measures because no trust is
being lost. The international community will be significantly helped by using public
health measures because there wont be a lost of trust among the people.
Lastly, the use of public health measures is the best solution in fighting Ebola
because we know that if done correctly they will work in our favor. In the article “Ebola:
Time to Act” it is said, “the tragedy is that we know how to stop Ebola.” (513:143). From
the time we were little we are taught to cover our mouths when we cough, stay home
when were sick, and not to come in contact with anyone who maybe sick. Most of us
have seen first hand how these simple things can keep us healthy, and the same (Nature
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Imani Carpenter
Brookman
Univ 112
11/11/2014
International Weekly Journal of Science) (Hayden) (Nature International Weekly Journal
of Science) things will work for Ebola. Although Ebola is more deadly than the common
cold it is still a virus and all viruses can be avoided using the same measures. These
measures that we are taught as a young child is going to help the majority of people
rather than harm anyone. This is another reason why using public health measures can be
seen by an ethicist as the utilitarian approach. Overall, we have seen the power of using
public health measures with viruses and we know they will do the same with Ebola.
Works Cited
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Imani Carpenter
Brookman
Univ 112
11/11/2014
Check Hayden, Erika. “Ebola Declared Public Health Emergency” Nature (2014):
n. pag. Web.
“Ebola: Time to Act” Editorial. Nature 513 (2014): 143-144. Web.
Reardon, Sara. “Ebola Treatments Caught in Limbo” Nature 511 (2014): 520 Web.
World Health Organization. Definitions: emergencies. 2008.
<www.who.int/hac/defintions/en/>
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