While millions of Americans were focused on declining COVID-19 cases and the passage of an important infrastructure bill in November of 2021, a sad and tragic event was occupying the minds and hearts of those from Sierra Leone. On November 5th, a collision occurred between an oil tanker and a truck in the streets of Freetown, Sierra Leone’s capital. According to U.S. News and World Report, the death toll has risen to over 145 deaths and over 300 injuries. Many people were trapped inside their own vehicles, while others were stuck inside burning buildings.

The novel Coronavirus also known as COVID-19 has become a global pandemic. Originating from Wuhan, China, COVID-19 has rapidly spread to every continent with the exception of Antarctica [1]. Although the Chinese government had attempted to contain the novel Coronavirus by quarantining the city of Wuhan, their attempts proved futile due to their sheer population. Despite their best efforts, COVID-19 spread to many countries. COVID-19 has symptoms that resemble the common flu. Some of these symptoms include fever, body ache, and dry cough [2].

Nursing professor who treated Ebola patients describes psychological toll.

As the coronavirus threatens health and upends daily life throughout the world, UofSC Today is turning to our faculty to help us make sense of it all. While no one can predict exactly what will happen in the coming weeks and months, our faculty can help us ask the right questions and put important context around emerging events.

Africa has largely been slow to be affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. Most African countries are reporting modest figures, compared to those in Asia, the Americas, and Europe.

However, this might not last. Experts believe that Africa needs to prepare itself for the breakout, even as its health facilities are taunted to be inadequate to fight any outbreak.

On March 22, 2020, on the onset of the virus outbreak in Africa, the World Health Organization through its Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told the continent to prepare for the worst.

From an Ebola veteran to all healthcare workers out there. I know how you feel. I've been there. I'm here for you if you need me. Please share if you feel it's appropriate.
Dr. Mike Drusano

This page is simply a list of quotes and resources related to self care / adjusting to life in the era of the Corona Virus - COVID-19 Epidemic.

There are a ton of pages with links to educational resources. We will not be creating our own.

If you have a link related to self-care that you would like to recommend, please email this to info@developarica.org. We reserve the right to not post every recommended link / resource. 
 

As citizens of our respective countries, most of us lead a prosperous life. We have houses, air-conditioning, and access to fresh water. Most of us are accustomed to a life of pleasure and comfort.    

Although completely preventable, malaria is endemic in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the consequences of its persistence are staggering. World Health Organization (WHO) reported 429,000 malaria deaths in 2015, 90% of which occurred in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Sub-Saharan Africa has faced health related challenges for many years, including Ebola, which gained worldwide attention a few years ago when it spread beyond the continent of Africa and threatened lives abroad. Thankfully, the 2014-2015 Ebola Outbreak has been contained, but as much of the world starts to relax, Africa continues its ongoing fight against malaria.

Many of us take our access to running water for granted. In the U.S., the average family of four uses about 400 gallons of water per day and the toilet is responsible for about 27% of that.[1] We often forget that access to safe water is a luxury to many people; in 2015, 683 million people did not have access to improved drinking water.[2] African countries are in the most critical need of water resource investments.