We've heard a lot of unfounded talk about Ebola in recent days. I don't sense a widespread panic out there, and I'm certainly not panicking myself, but if people don't know the real facts, they might not have the most responsible reactions to what's going on.
So let's review some basic facts:
When is Ebola contagious?
It's only contagious when an infected person is showing symptoms, such as fever, vomiting, flu-like body-aches and diarrhea.
How do you contract it?
You get it through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids, including blood, sweat, saliva and semen among others. Ebola is not airborne, so you can't get it just by sitting next to someone if you're not coming in contact with their fluids.
How is Ebola cleaned up?
Bleach and other hospital disinfectants will kill it.
So if all this is true, why have at least two health care workers contracted the virus? Obviously the CDC's protocols are inadequate, which they now admit, and they are working to improvement.
This has led many to question whether CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden should resign. No! At least he is acknowledging and working on the right problems. The CDC has not done everything right, and probably Dr. Frieden has not done everything right, but right now our focus needs to be on solving the problem and not on wanting to see heads roll. Instability in the CDC's leadership would absolutely not help, and you can't have that when you're in the middle of a crisis.
