At The Front Lines

Nurses and doctors have died at the front lines. In a war against a dreadful disease. In Ebola-ravaged West Africa, about 60 healthcare workers accounted for 8% of about 1,000 fatalities since the outbreak of the viral hemorrhagic fever six months ago. Two American missionaries who were in the midst of the fight against Ebola in Liberia, a doctor, and a medical hygienist, contracted the disease and have been flown to an Atlanta hospital for treatment.

They are true healthcare heroes, part of those at the front lines who have to contend with poor healthcare infrastructure in Africa, countries further overwhelmed by the virulence of the epidemic.

Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol are heroes who lived, thanks to an experimental drug. Dr. Samuel Brisbane, Dr. Sheikh Umar Khan, and Dr. Modupeh Cole, sadly, succumbed to the fight of their lives; they are heroes. Other nameless nurses and healthcare workers have also died as heroes.

Countless other workers carry on in the struggle to survive while working in extreme conditions, in hot protective suits and ill-equipped centers. They are also heroes.

And the brave men and women keep coming back. Monia Sayah, a nurse with Doctors Without Borders, spent 11 weeks in Guinea. Despite the challenges of working in sweltering heat amid a community distrustful of foreigners, she was still willing to return to West Africa.

This Friday, August 8, 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO), finally declared the Ebola outbreak an international healthcare emergency.

And yet, there are more healthcare specialists being deployed by Doctors Without Borders to West Africa. A renewed call to action to help out. This is reminiscent of the firefighters in the 9/11 tragedy who trooped up the World Trade buildings while the panicked masses stormed out.

Some people had blasted the US government for daring to bring the infected missionaries to our shores. Men and women who live in gilded towers shake in their pedicured toes as they questioned why Americans are being subjected to a possible epidemic in our midst. Phobic individuals who could actually afford a "bubble world" propagate fear to protest the transfer of American citizens to a hospital whose staff is well-trained in all matters infectious.

Susan Mitchell Grant, Chief Nursing Officer at Emory Hospital, wrote in her op-ed piece:

“Most importantly, we are caring for these patients because it is the right thing to do. These Americans generously went to Africa on a humanitarian mission to help eradicate a disease that is especially deadly in countries without our healthcare infrastructure. They deserve the same selflessness from us. To refuse to care for these professionals would raise enormous questions about the ethical foundation of our profession. They have a right to come home for their care when it can be done effectively and safely.

As human beings, we all hope that if we were in need of superior health care, our country and its top doctors would help us get better. We can either let our actions be guided by misunderstandings, fear, and self-interest, or we can lead by knowledge, science, and compassion. We can fear, or we can care.”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/08/06/im-the-head-nurse-at-emory-this-is-why-we-wanted-to-bring-the-ebola-patients-to-the-u-s/?tid=pm_pop

As a nurse, I understand the moral and ethical responsibility and I take pride in doing the right thing. Even far away from West Africa, healthcare workers everywhere are faced with the unknown. Violent patients, mysterious diseases, uncertain diagnoses, unsafe times.

I have taught about Ebola, smallpox, and pneumonic plague in my Emergency Preparedness classes, so I know how frightening and how challenging these diseases are. As I chanted "Isolation, isolation, isolation", I hoped that the nurses take heed and isolate patients as the need comes up.

A triage nurse is at the front lines. All she can do is to be alert for the signs, to protect herself, the patient, and the community she serves. The nurses, doctors, and other healthcare workers are well-aware of the immense challenges they face, and yet they choose to stay. The courage and the dedication are awe-inspiring.

We are in the business of saving lives. This is what we’ve signed up for. We choose to care.




Addendum: More names were added to honor the sacrifice of those generous souls who passed away and to celebrate those who are still fighting for the people of West Africa.