No recommendation to block West Africans – President Ramotar

THERE has been no recommendation coming to the Cabinet or the Government of Guyana to bar West Africans from entering Guyana in the interim or long term as a precautionary measure against the deadly Ebola virus from coming to these shores.This is according to President Donald Ramotar during an invited comment by the Guyana Chronicle yesterday morning when asked about the possibility of Guyana blocking citizens from the affected countries from entering this country.
The President further went on to say that any recommendations with respect to Ebola will have to come from the Ministry of Health and any such recommendation will have to be considered.
“That has not come to us so there is no such intention in mind, at least not at this point in time. Let’s see what the Ministry of Health will tell us,” President Ramotar told the Guyana Chronicle.
Two weeks ago United States President Barack Obama via a Facebook video sent a message to the nations of West Africa about the preventative measures which need to be employed to avert the spread of the virus while committing that the United States Government will work with the government of the affected countries to fight the virus.
He also urged that there be better practices at health care institutions and medical centres around the world to ensure that the world never faces such an outbreak again.
As of July 2014, the ongoing Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa holds the record for being the worst outbreak in the recorded history of the virus.

The outbreak – which has affected the countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone – now has more than a thousand cases, in which more than half of those are confirmed.
Ebola is a rare but deadly virus that causes bleeding inside and outside the body.
As the virus spreads through the body, it damages the immune system and organs. Ultimately, it causes levels of blood-clotting cells to drop. This leads to severe, uncontrollable bleeding. The disease, also known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever or Ebola virus, kills up to 90% of people who are infected.
Though more concentrated in parts of Africa, history shows that cases of infection have popped up in other countries as well.

How Do You Get Ebola?
According to webmd.com, Ebola isn’t as contagious as more common viruses like colds, influenza, or measles. It spreads to people by contact with the skin or bodily fluids of an infected animal, like a monkey, chimp, or fruit bat. Then it moves from person to person the same way. Those who care for a sick person or bury someone who has died from the disease often get it.
Other ways to get Ebola include touching contaminated needles or surfaces.

(By Leroy Smith )