An Article by Harry F. Hull, Article Critique Example

An article by Harry F. Hull entitled “Why quarantines won’t stop Ebola from spreading in the U.S.” in The Washington Post describes the close and very real threat of the Ebola virus on American soil with the discovery of a patient in Texas. The article describes the processes of isolation and quarantine and notes that isolation is designed for the ill patient, while quarantine is designed for healthy patients who have been directly exposed to the ill person (Hull). The existence of Ebola in the US is a difficult challenge for many reasons, and it requires public health experts to address these concerns and to determine the best possible method to limit exposure so that an epidemic is not observed (Hull).

The primary intervention methods at this stage are to identify patients who may be at risk for Ebola or already have the disease and aim to isolate any positive diagnoses and quarantine others who have been directly exposed (Hull). Most importantly, any persons who have traveled to the US from West Africa must be evaluated very closely, and therefore, hospitals must be prepared to manage these risks with isolation procedures in place (Hull). The current level of intervention has been reactive rather than proactive, and this led to turning away the patient in Texas from a hospital with his first visit to the emergency room (Hull). This experience must provide a learning curve in addressing future cases, as the reality of the situation demonstrates that Ebola will not go away quietly (Hull). Hospitals and pharmacists must work collaboratively to ensure that patients are treated as best as possible, given the fact that the condition is not treatable in a mainstream form (Hull). These factors support the notion that Ebola must be contained through public health procedures that are comprehensive, long-term, and consistent as more cases emerge (Hull).

Works Cited

Hull, Harry F. “Why quarantines won’t stop Ebola from spreading in the U.S. The Washington Post 5 October 2014:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/10/03/why-quarantines-wont-stop-ebola-from-spreading-in-the-u-s/