By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Ebola Hysteria in Ohio
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Public Health > Ebola Hysteria in Ohio
Public Health

Ebola Hysteria in Ohio

Michael Kirsch
Michael Kirsch
Share
5 Min Read
ebola hysteria
SHARE

The Ebola hysteria continues. True, we might have a greater chance of being struck twice by lightning, but the press would have us think we need to purchase Hazmat suits for our families just to be prepared. I’m surprised that an entrepreneur hasn’t at least constructed prototypes for Hazmat suits for newborns, popular dog breeds, pet rodents and heirloom tomatoes.

Tomatoes?

The Ebola hysteria continues. True, we might have a greater chance of being struck twice by lightning, but the press would have us think we need to purchase Hazmat suits for our families just to be prepared. I’m surprised that an entrepreneur hasn’t at least constructed prototypes for Hazmat suits for newborns, popular dog breeds, pet rodents and heirloom tomatoes.

Tomatoes?

ebola hysteriaYes, tomatoes. I have not heard any authoritative official from either the NIH, the CDC the WHO or Medicins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) who have stated unequivocally that you cannot contract Ebola from an heirloom tomato. To me, the hypothesis is entirely plausible as the sneaky virus can hide in the heirloom’s surface crevices just waiting and hoping to gain access into an unsuspecting mucous membrane.

As of this writing, there are 159 contacts in Ohio who have had contact with an Ebola infected nurse who for reasons known but to God was cleared by the CDC to board a commercial airplane with a fever after she had treated an Ebola patient in Texas. Each day, the number of Ohio contacts grows, so by the time these words are posted on Sunday, I expect that there will be more contacts.

The definition of what constitutes contact with an Ebola patient is evolving. As of today, the new and improved definition of contact is being an enclosed space with the patient for any length of time. Hmm, if I am watching the Cleveland Cavaliers in our downtown stadium from the last row, and an Ebola patient is in the first row on the opposite side, am I now considered a contact? Would all 10,000 fans be forced to enter into a 21-day period of quarantine? 

Does it matter that medical experts have consistently explained that you cannot catch this virus unless the infected individual is symptomatic and you are within reach of that individual’s bodily secretions?

An Ohio school was closed as a staff member was on the Frontier airplane that the nurse had traveled on although on a different flight. Two hospitals in Cleveland sent nurses home with pay and admitted publicly that this was for PR protection, not for patient protection. What hope is there when our medical institutions are lubricating our hysteria instead of battling it?

This past Monday, I noticed a new procedure had been implemented in our office. On the advice of local and state medical authorities, we were asking every patient who enters our office, if they have in to West Africa or had contact with an individual who has been there. This nonsensical policy would protect no one. There are zero known Ebola patients in Ohio at present. This is a difficult disease to contract as contracting this virus requires that one is in direct contact with bodily fluids of an infected person. Querying every patient about recent travels from West Africa only feeds the hysteria, while it burns up our staff’s time. Asking Granny who comes to see us from her assisted living facility if she’s been to Sierra Leone recently, doesn’t seem to be sound preventive medical policy.

I think that our moratorium on heirloom tomato ingestion makes more sense than the Ebolaphobia policy. Can this post go viral?

Ebola hysteria / shutterstock

TAGGED:Ebola
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

a woman walking on the hallway
6 Easy Healthcare Ways to Sit Less and Move More Every Day
Health
September 9, 2025
Clinical Expertise
Healthcare at a Crossroads: Why Leadership Matters More Than Ever
Global Healthcare
September 9, 2025
travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025

You Might also Like

Harvard Students Design ChemoPatch for Cancer Treatments Outside the Hospital

November 14, 2013

Using Technology to Promote Health Literacy

November 7, 2012
direct primary care
FinanceHealth ReformHospital AdministrationMedical EthicsNewsPolicy & LawPublic Health

Direct Primary Care Goes to Washington

February 17, 2014

Senior Fitness, Obesity and Medicaid – Weighty Issues!

April 20, 2011
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?