Surviving Ebola

American reaction to the 2014 Ebola outbreak was short on compassion but long on fear. Filmmaker Guy Smith's PBS-aired NOVA documentary looks at the Ebola threat, detailing how it started and spread, and why some people have managed to survive it. Named after a river near the epicenter of the disease, the Ebola virus attacks a victim's blood cells and is quickly spread by contact with bodily fluids. First identified about 40 years ago, it is speculated that the virus was contracted when people ate infected fruit bats (considered a delicacy in parts of Africa). In the early years, the outbreak was confined to limited areas, but in today's world of global air travel, the risk has expanded. During the 2014 outbreak, health facilities were overwhelmed throughout affected African nations—hampered by a lack of doctors—so many victims were left to die at home or in the streets. In graphic detail, the documentary describes how the virus attaches itself to healthy cells, and proliferates throughout the body, causing acute pain, and usually leading to death within 12 days (heroic health workers often contracted the disease, which can infect even after a patient dies). At first, nations and health officials were slow to recognize the danger, but in America the Center for Disease Control ultimately began to test experimental drugs, including one known as ZMapp. This drug has shown some effectiveness, but there are not nearly enough doses available, and when the drugs were first tested on aid workers, many Africans were angry, sensing a bias that reminded them of a racist colonial past. Although the fear-mongering has somewhat subsided, treatment of Ebola is still very much a work in progress. Featuring testimony from scientists, health workers, and some lucky survivors, this timely documentary is recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (S. Rees)