So that nurse with Ebola got on a plane

[MrPopo]

There are 317 million people estimated to live in America. Only 3 of them have ebola. Your chances of winning the lottery jackpot are roughly one in 18 million. If ebola was handed out at random you would still have a far better chance of winning the lottery than you would of catching ebola. In fact, since ebola is not handed out at random and you probably are not in the direct vicinity of anyone with ebola since they are dead or quarantined, you have an even better chance of not catching ebola.

...and 10 months ago no one in Africa had Ebola. 9 months ago the odds of getting Ebola in Africa were 1 in 1,000,000,000. Today they are 1 in 1,000,000 following your math above.

Now 4,500+ have died and thousands more are infected.

A month ago 0 of 317 million had ebola. Then 1 of 317 million. Now 3 in 317 million.

I'm not worried about getting Ebola but the lottery analogy above is pretty silly.

Wait, are you arguing I should lock my doors for fear of shooting blood out my eyes? Or are you arguing for the sake of arguing and not disagreeing with JT's main point?

[flojocabron]

[mjmjr25]

Wait, are you arguing I should lock my doors for fear of shooting blood out my eyes? Or are you arguing for the sake of arguing and not disagreeing with JT's main point?

I'm saying (again now) that the lottery analogy is poor and may cause some to not take this as serious as they need to. Your odds don't increase of winning the lottery by 1,000% (the rate the odds of contracting Ebola have increased in Africa the past few months).

To michi's point about medical staff - people need to understand the symptons of Ebola. Someone may present with what looks like a bad cold, food poisoning, or flu. You can not isolate every single person presenting with onset symptons of Ebola. Most hospitals are going to have 1-2% of patient rooms setup as isolation rooms and by the time an Ebola patient is properly diagnosed you will have exposed your frontline (admitting, registration, triage and ED staff; as well as countless visitors and other bystanders on the way to the hospital). As far as preparation - the head to toe suits cost $150 with basic N95 respirator, the higher end respirator the CDC is (we believe) going to recommend will up that cost to $200 per. These suits are to be disposed of after each use. Most hospitals are privately owned and unless FEMA or the DoH release hundreds of millions of dollars in funding you will not see hospitals purchase the mass supplies they need to properly contain an Ebola patient until they have an Ebola patient.

[marurun]

The key is to ensure that front-line encounters with patients eliminate contact with bodily fluids. For brief encounters, most front-line personnel will be fine with rubber gloves and simple respirators, as long as they practice carefully.

Ebola is highly virulent, but simply not all that contagious.

[J T]

Wait, are you arguing I should lock my doors for fear of shooting blood out my eyes? Or are you arguing for the sake of arguing and not disagreeing with JT's main point?

I'm saying (again now) that the lottery analogy is poor and may cause some to not take this as serious as they need to. Your odds don't increase of winning the lottery by 1,000% (the rate the odds of contracting Ebola have increased in Africa the past few months).

I will concede that my analogy is problematic because lottery winnings are not contagious and ebola is, so the odds change over time with ebola and a disease also doesn't appear on a schedule like a lottery. Nevertheless, the current probability that any of us reading this will get ebola in the near future is astronomically low. The main people who need to worry about this stuff are the CDC, WHO, airlines with flights or transfers from countries with outbreaks, and healthworkers with exposure to ebola. Most of us simply need to understand that it is a very serious disease that we are very unlikely to get. Nevertheless, the usual rules of not coming in contact with sick people's piss, shit, blood, puke, or cum still apply. You should still wash your hands multiple times throughout the day, eat healthy, get regular exercise, and sleep for 8-9 hours at night. Also, don't let others cough or sneeze on you, and cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze, though these things do not spread ebola, they do spread other types of disease like the flu. Speaking of which, get your flu shots. For seriously guys, it's not that expensive.

[mjmjr25]

That's all i'm saying - i've seen firsthand what taking a cavalier attitude about Ebola can do.

[J T]

That's all i'm saying - i've seen firsthand what taking a cavalier attitude about Ebola can do.

You know someone with ebola?

[mjmjr25]

No, but i've seen people get de-friended on facebook over making light of it.

[J T]

lol

[Ack]

/thread