Representations of SARS in the UK newspapers

In the Spring of 2003, there was a huge interest in the global news media following the emergence of a new infectious disease: severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). This study examines how this novel disease threat was depicted in the UK newspapers, using social representations theory and in particular existing work on social representations of HIV/AIDS and Ebola to analyse the meanings of the epidemic. It investigates the way that SARS was presented as a dangerous threat to the UK public, whilst almost immediately the threat was said to be ‘contained’ using the mechanism of ‘othering’: SARS was said to be unlikely to personally affect the UK reader because the Chinese were so different to ‘us’; so ‘other’. In this sense, the SARS scare, despite the remarkable speed with which it was played out in the modern global news media, resonates with the meanings attributed to other epidemics of infectious diseases throughout history. Yet this study also highlights a number of differences in the social representations of SARS compared with earlier epidemics. In particular, this study examines the phenomena of ‘emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases’ over the past 30 or so years and suggests that these have impacted on the faith once widely held that Western biomedicine could ‘conquer’ infectious disease

Surveillance and Response to Infectious Diseases and Comorbidities: An African and German Perspective

Cite: Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), (2019). Surveillance and Response to Infectious Diseases and Comorbidities: An African and German Perspective [Available online] DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/assaf.2019/0042The conference explored various topics pertaining to Infectious Diseases and Comorbidities. These included: antimicrobial resistance; one health; HIV; TB; Malaria; and HCV. The objectives of the symposium were to scientifically analyse challenges pertaining to infectious diseases and comorbidities as they relate to surveillance, responses and diagnostics; identify current and future research needs that can be employed to tacle emrging scientific challenges; Assess possible solutions to current challenges as they relate to surveillance and response to infectious diseases and morbidities and how these can be used to provide science advice to governments; and, exchange scientific information between young and senior scientists from the sub-Saharan Africa and Germany.Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf

Globalisation and Ebola disease: Implications for business activities in Nigeria

With the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa, it is expected that whatever the transmitting cause and spread of the virus, it has affected the economic, political and socio- economy activities with an immense strain on the health sector. The scope of this study is the most populous nation in Africa, Nigeria. The quantitative method adopted provided results from questionnaires, which were analysed and resulted in providing the underlined significant role of globalisation in the development of Nigeria business activities and socio-psychological impact of the epidemic virus on globalisation. This is in line with the cross-border spread of the disease in generating bi-lateral strain amongst the affected countries, thus been envisioned from the spread of Ebola Virus. In the course of the paper, epidemics of such degrees in the past were reviewed by looking at how they surfaced, resurfaced and combated. The paper stresses on the role of globalisation in spreading, maintaining and eliminating the virus and its socio-economic implications in Nigeria and her related activities. This paper concludes that Nigerians are aware of the socio-economic benefits and ills of globalisation and they are convinced that the country had been impacted by it. Notably, disasters are proposed to be preventable with adequate systemized agency who will be saddled with epidemic control in Nigeria, resulting in a continuous notable success rather than having a haphazard control mechanism with business activities in negativity aside its disruption

On the socio-economic impact of pandemics in Africa: Lessons learned from COVID-19, Trypanosomiasis, HIV, Yellow Fever and Cholera

Throughout history, nothing has killed more human beings than infectious diseases. Although, death rates from pandemics dropped globally by about 0.8 % per year, all the way through the 20th century, the number of new infectious diseases like Sars, HIV and Covid-19 increased by nearly fourfold over the past century. In Africa, there were reported a total of 4,522,489 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 119,816 death, as of 23 April 2021. The pandemic impacted seriously on the economic and social sectors in almost all African countries. It is threatening to push up to 58 m people into extreme poverty. However, apart from the African poor, the Covid pandemic also affects the growing African middle class, i.e. about 170 million out of Africa's 1.3 billion people currently classified as middle class. Nearly eight million of may be thrust into poverty because of the coronavirus and its economic aftermath. This setback will be felt for decades to come. Moreover, in recent African History also other infectouse diseases like the 1896-1906 Congo Basin Trypanosomiasis with a death-toll of over 500.000 as well as the 1900-1920 Uganda African trypanosomiasis epidemic with 200,000-300,000 death had tremendous negative impact on Africa's societies and economies. Actually, other pandemics, like Yellow Fever, Cholera, Meningitis and Measles - not to mention Malaria - contributed to long-lasting economic downturns and seriously affect the social wellbeing for decades.Im Laufe der Geschichte hat nichts mehr Menschen getötet als Infektionskrankheiten. Obwohl die Sterblichkeitsrate durch Pandemien im Laufe des 20. Jahrhunderts weltweit um etwa 0,8% pro Jahr gesunken ist, hat sich die Zahl der neuen Infektionskrankheiten wie Sars, HIV und Covid-19 im vergangenen Jahrhundert fast vervierfacht. In Afrika wurden zum 23. April 2021 insgesamt 4.522.489 bestätigte COVID-19-Fälle und 119.816 Todesfälle gemeldet. Die Pandemie hatte schwerwiegende Auswirkungen auf den wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Sektor in fast allen afrikanischen Ländern. Sie droht, bis zu 58 Millionen Menschen in extreme Armut zu treiben. Abgesehen von den afrikanischen Armen betrifft die Covid-Pandemie jedoch auch die wachsende afrikanische Mittelschicht, d. h. etwa 170 Millionen der 1,3 Milliarden Menschen in Afrika, die derzeit als Mittelschicht eingestuft sind. Fast acht Millionen von ihnen könnten aufgrund des Coronavirus und seiner wirtschaftlichen Folgen in Armut geraten. Dieser Rückschlag wird noch Jahrzehnte zu spüren sein. Darüber hinaus hatten in der jüngeren afrikanischen Geschichte auch andere Infektionskrankheiten wie die Trypanosomiasis (Schlafkrankheit) im Kongobecken von 1896-1906 mit einer Zahl von über 500.000 Todesopfern sowie die Trypanosomiasis-Epidemie in Uganda von 1900-1920 mit 200.000-300.000 Todesfällen enorme negative Auswirkungen auf die afrikanischen Gesellschaften und Volkswirtschaften. Tatsächlich haben andere Pandemien wie Gelbfieber, Cholera, Meningitis und Masern - ganz zu schweigen von Malaria - zu lang anhaltenden wirtschaftlichen Abschwüngen beigetragen und das soziale Wohlbefinden über Jahrzehnte hinweg ernsthaft beeinträchtigt.Au cours de l’histoire, rien n’a tué plus d’êtres humains que les maladies infectieuses et la fièvre hémorragique. Bien que les taux de mortalité dus aux pandémies aient chuté de près de 1% par an dans le monde, environ 0,8% par an, tout au long du XXe siècle, le nombre de nouvelles maladies infectieuses comme le Sars, le VIH et le Covid-19 a presque quadruplé par rapport au passé. En Afrique, on a signalé un total de 4 522 489 cas confirmés de COVID-19 et 119 816 décès, au 23 avril 2021. La pandémie a eu de graves répercussions sur les secteurs économique et social dans presque tous les pays africains. Il menace de pousser jusqu'à 58 millions de personnes dans l'extrême pauvreté. Cependant, outre les Africains pauvres, la pandémie de Covid affecte également la classe moyenne africaine en pleine croissance, c'est-à-dire environ 170 millions sur les 1,3 milliard d'africains actuellement classés dans la classe moyenne. Près de huit millions d'entre eux pourraient être plongés dans la pauvreté à cause du coronavirus et de ses conséquences économiques. Ce revers se fera sentir pendant des décennies. En outre, dans l'histoire récente de l'Afrique, d'autres maladies infectieuses comme la trypanosomiase du bassin du Congo de 1896 à 1906 avec un nombre des morts de plus de 500 000 ainsi que l'épidémie de trypanosomose africaine en Ouganda de 1900 à 1920 avec 200 000 à 300 000 décès ont eu un impact négatif considérable sur les sociétés et économies africaines. En fait, d'autres pandémies, comme la fièvre jaune, le choléra, la méningite et la rougeole - sans parler du paludisme - ont contribué à des ralentissements économiques durables et affectent gravement le bien-être social pendant des décennies

The social and political lives of zoonotic disease models: Narratives, science and policy

Zoonotic diseases currently pose both major health threats and complex scientific and policy challenges, to which modelling is increasingly called to respond. In this article we argue that the challenges are best met by combining multiple models and modelling approaches that elucidate the various epidemiological, ecological and social processes at work. These models should not be understood as neutral science informing policy in a linear manner, but as having social and political lives: social, cultural and political norms and values that shape their development and which they carry and project. We develop and illustrate this argument in relation to the cases of H5N1 avian influenza and Ebola, exploring for each the range of modelling approaches deployed and the ways they have been co-constructed with a particular politics of policy. Addressing the complex, uncertain dynamics of zoonotic disease requires such social and political lives to be made explicit in approaches that aim at triangulation rather than integration, and plural and conditional rather than singular forms of policy advice.ESR