Ebola has such a stigma in the Congo that people are afraid of being inoculated against it. Health officials face a two-pronged challenge in combating the deadly virus: one, the Congo is a war zone. The other is the virus’s perceived disgrace and people’s fears of the unknown. To get around these challenges, one local Read more
Catholics have stopped administering several sacraments in the Democratic Republic of Congo to help prevent an Ebola virus outbreak from spreading. Baptisms, confirmations, ordinations and anointing of the sick have been suspended until further notice in the country’s northwestern regions hardest hit by the outbreak. So far, at least 25 people have died since the Read more
Invariably journalists write about Oxfam’s goats whenever charity Christmas gifts come up. A goat will give a family seven litres of fresh milk a week to drink and sell. But I don’t get paid to repeat the same message every Christmas. Just when I was mulling the “what can I give other than a goat” Read more
A controversial healing group that claims to have a cure for Ebola is coming to New Zealand this weekend to promote a bleach-based solution that medical experts have slammed as being potentially fatal. Genesis II Church of Health and Healing leader James Humble is heading a three-day, US$500-a-head ($646) seminar in Ngatea on the Hauraki Read more
A US survivor of the deadly Ebola virus has stated her belief in the power of prayer. Nina Pham, a nurse from Texas, was the first person to contract the virus within the United States. This is believed to have happened when she was nursing Thomas Duncan, who subsequently died. Now declared free of Ebola Read more
In the past few months, the world has witnessed the worst outbreak of Ebola since the disease was first identified in 1976 — it has already claimed the lives of more than 3,400 people. But while the first cases in the U.S. and Spain have stirred fears over the past week, we don’t need to Read more
A Spanish priest infected with the Ebola virus in Liberia is the first patient to be sent back to Europe with the deadly disease. An air force plane from Spain was sent on August 6 to get Fr Miguel Pajares, 75, who was in West Africa doing missionary work. The illness has claimed the lives Read more
There’s a term biologists and economists use these days — ecosystem services — which refers to the many ways nature supports the human endeavor. Forests filter the water we drink, for example, and birds and bees pollinate crops, both of which have substantial economic as well as biological value. If we fail to understand and Read more