The world remains vulnerable to new plagues. Are we ready? The searing documentary “After Ebola: Nebraska and the Next Pandemic” offers possible clues as it examines the U.S. response to Ebola six years ago.
In 2014, the dreaded Ebola virus resurged, killing more than 11,000 people in rural West Africa. That same year, the University of Nebraska Medical Center began treating three patients infected with the virus, becoming one of only three medical facilities in the United States with proper biocontainment facilities. The documentary focuses on the efforts of the hospital’s elite medical team during this challenging time.
The arrival of the first patient—an American doctor on a mission in Liberia—filled the team with equal determination and intense anticipation. Their years of training are finally put to the test, and they know that every step of the nursing process has no room for error.
The film includes interviews with doctors and nurses who care for patients. These healthcare professionals are clearly at the forefront of the care process, but they are also the most vulnerable to contracting and spreading disease. We share the dynamic risks they face every step of the journey—from the challenges of transport to the hospital to the subtleties of patient interaction and physical contact. Small adjustments are always necessary and teams are forced to react on the fly.
Their experiences influence future protocols for treating such patients. Treating each patient’s symptoms is the simplest and most attainable of her top concerns. Safety measures—from properly isolating the airflow in treatment rooms to handling blood samples from the room to the lab—became critical.
There is no denying that the University of Nebraska Medical Center is a world-class institution with the necessary resources and preventive care in place before the first patient arrives. Much work remains to be done to bring other hospitals in the United States and around the world to meet these standards.
By charting the inner workings of this extraordinary medical team, After Ebola: Nebraska and the Next Pandemic provides a great example for others to follow.
