Kevin Hendrick 12/17/14
Chemistry C135 Mr. Ippolito
“The Path to Zero Ebola Cases”
By Jim Yong Kim
I read the article, “The Path to Zero Ebola Cases”, by Jim Yong Kim, which describes the steps required to fully extinguish the Ebola epidemic in Western Africa. First, the author writes that resources need to keep being sent to Western Africa to aid the patients. Kim states, “For Senegal, the cost to treat one patient and all of his contacts was more than $1 million . For Nigeria, one infected person led to 19 other cases, and more than 19,000 contacts traced by over 800 health care workers at a cost of more than $13 million.” It will cost a lot of money, but to quell the spread of Ebola it is worth the money to the millions of innocent lives. The second and third steps are about the people tracking down the virus, and the scientists analyzing the data to see if Ebola is further spreading. The fourth step is that national agencies must adapt to the conditions of local towns, and if this is done right than the number of patients and their contacts will drop greatly. Finally, the fifth step is that not only regional groups need to keep fighting the virus, but international powers such as the United States and the United Kingdom need to keep sending resources to fight Ebola. If all these steps are taken, then one of the most fearsome epidemics in the Modern Age will be removed, and the scare of Ebola will end.
Although there has not been a case of Ebola in the United States, this affects me because Ebola has been spreading for almost a year now, and I believe that that is way too long for these innocent lives to be put at fatal risk. I chose this topic because I wanted to know how close we were to stopping the spread of Ebola. Obviously, this would have a momentous impact on the rest of the world, primarily Western Africa. If Ebola was extinguished, than that already devastated region could move on from this time of loss and tragedy.
Jim Yong Kim wrote an impressive article on what is still such a pressing topic in our world. I liked that he elaborated on each of the five “steps” which could help to stop Ebola, and also the statistics he gave on the disease. For example, he wrote, “More than 11 months into the crisis, thousands of people are dead and more than 17,000 have been infected.” I thought Jim could have given a background on Ebola and its effects, and also he did really expand on the specific resources necessary to stop the spread. Overall, Jim Yong Kim wrote a great article on an important topic that is affecting the lives of millions, and is in the sorrowful minds of billions.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/12/opinion/jim-yong-kim-world-bank-the-path-to-zero-ebola-cases.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Aw%2C%7B%222%22%3A%22RI%3A15%22%7D&_r=0
ReplyDeleteKim, Jim Yong. "The Path to Zero Ebola Cases." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Dec. 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014.
I chose to review Kevin's review of “The Path to Zero Ebola Cases” By Jim Yong Kim. I thought that Kevin did a good job on his review the article. A few things that stood out to me were that Kevin used such good vocabulary in his way of explaining things such as the use of the word quell and the word extinguished. Another thing that stood out to me was that it is costing to treat one person and all those he can into contact with which means that they aren’t doing a good job containing the virus. One other thing that stood out to me was that there are currently 17,000 infected people and the number grows every day. Something Kevin messed up on was he said that there are 19,000 cases from the contact but later he says there is only 17,000 so he should not contradict himself. One other thing that he could have done better was to give just a little more background on Ebola and how it spreads and stuff like that. One thing that really hit was that one infected case led to 19 more infections and that is a statistic that is a little scary in it’s own way.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/12/opinion/jim-yong-kim-world-bank-the-path-to-zero-ebola-cases.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Aw%2C%7B%222%22%3A%22RI%3A15%22%7D&_r=0
ReplyDeleteKim, Jim Yong. "The Path to Zero Ebola Cases." The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Dec. 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014.
I chose to comment on Kevin Hendrick’s review of “The path to Zero Ebola Cases” by Jim Yong Kim. One thing that I enjoyed about Kevin’s review was how he logically presented his information. The clear presentation of the material was conducive to my understanding of the steps to stop the ebola outbreak. I also liked his use of quotations and statistics. His inclusion of opinions from experts on the subject back up the arguments he makes throughout the piece. Furthermore, I appreciate how Kevin created an honest and thoughtful critique of the article. The critique adds to my understanding of the article because it supplements my understanding of ebola, as well as the authors writing style. Finally, Kevin’s great use of vocabulary and good punctuation made his review more enjoyable to read. Though much of Kevins report was very good, there are a couple things he could improve upon. First of all, he could include some more background to the Ebola virus. Occasionally I was confused because I did not have a full understanding of the disease itself. Additionally, he could expand on his personal connection to the article and the implications the subject may have on his life. I learned many things from Kevin’s review, but one thing that stood out to me was that the cost to treat one patient and all of his contacts was more than $1 million. Overall, Kevin did a great job with all parts of his review and I learned a lot.