Community Health Nursing - Assignment Example

Communicable Disease: Ebola s Ebola is a virus disease that is transmitted through direct contact with human secretions and fluids like infected blood, organs, broken skin, lesions, surfaces, clothing and beddings. It is believed the virus originated from fruit bats in Central Africa and was introduced to humans via fluids and secretions of other animals like chimpanzees. The incubation period of the virus is between 2 and 21 days before the symptoms are seen. Symptoms include: muscle pain, fever, fatigue, sore throats, headaches, diarrhea, vomiting, both external and internal bleeding and kidney and liver failure.

The average casualty rate of Ebola is 50% and therefore, samples are not to be extracted from patients. (WHO, 2014)Diagnosis is conducted through various tests; virus extraction by cell structure, serum neutralization test and electron microscopy are examples of diagnostic tests. There is no treatment available for Ebola. However rehydration with intravenous or oral fluids is administered to patients to increase their survival chances. Prevention measures include: fast response to Ebola incidences and isolation of affected victims, proper burial of victims and community engagement towards controlling the disease.

There are no proven vaccines for Ebola, though two vaccines are undergoing human testing currently.(WHO, 2014)In case of an outbreak, nurses can educate the affected communities about the disease as ignorance can have dire consequences. Nurses can provide both the facts and myths associated with Ebola and advice them on the best prevention measures. The main ethical issue that Ebola patients face is that they are isolated and kept away from their loved ones for as long as they live. References1.

Chedekel, L. (August 13, 2014). Battling Ebola: The Ethical Issues. Retrieved from http://www.bu.edu/today/2014/battling-ebola-the-ethical-issues/. 2. World Health Organization (WHO). (September, 2014). Ebola virus disease. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs103/en/. 3. York, G. (Oct. 09, 2014). Fear and Education play crucial role in Ebola crisis. Retrieved from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/fear-and-education-play-crucial-role-in-ebola-crisis/article20999262/.