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What Africans Are Saying About International Response To Ebola

What Africans Are Saying About International Response To Ebola

Survey respondents in parts of Africa hit hardest by Ebola say they are satisfied with the international response to the crisis — perhaps surprising given the negative coverage around lack of supplies and beds, according to Denver-based market research company GeoPoll.

USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah recently emphasized the importance of real-time data in the fight against Ebola.

Denver-based market research company, GeoPoll, has been working with partners including World Food Programme to establish infrastructure for data reporting in emerging markets using mobile networks.

GeoPoll has conducted mobile surveys on the Ebola crisis. Its CEO, James Eberhard, says more data is needed for targeted action against Ebola.

“There’s a lot of talk around Ebola, quickly leading to unnecessary hysteria, but little of it around how to best stop the outbreak,” Eberhard said in an opinion piece in EbolaDeeply. “Questions around the direction of Ebola’s spread, how many beds should be sent to what areas, and who needs education on prevention desperately need answers, and right now governments are only relying on guesswork to make decisions.”

GeoPoll has been conducting ongoing mobile text surveys with the World Food Programme on food security and Ebola. Last week, GeoPoll ran surveys in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone to gauge perceptions of the international community’s response to Ebola.

All three countries are experiencing food shortages and it’s worse in areas where Ebola is prevalent.

Respondents to a mobile text survey Nov. 5-Nov. 12 were asked what help is needed most in their communities.

Based on survey responses, GeoPoll found that citizens in Sierra Leone and Liberia are generally satisfied or very satisfied with the response to the crisis — perhaps surprising given the negative coverage around lack of supplies and beds, said Roxana Elliott with GeoPoll, in an email to AFKInsider.

In Sierra Leone, 45 percent of respondents to a mobile text survey said they are “very satisfied” with the international response to Ebola. In Liberia, 54 percent expressed great satisfaction. Of the 1,000-plus responses in each country, healthcare facilities and help with water and sanitation were listed as the highest needs.

GeoPoll’s full report of this survey was released this morning.

USAID Administrator Shah said “the success of the Ebola response is access to real-time data” GeoPoll CEO Eberhard said that better data is crucial to tracking and stopping the spread of Ebola.

In Liberia’s Montserrado county, which includes Monrovia — an Ebola epicenter — 55 percent of survey respondents were “very satisfied”, and 78 percent of repondents were either “somewhat” or “very” statisfied with the international community’s response.

Dissatisfied with the international response

In Sierra Leone, 17 percent of respondents said they were either somewhat or very dissatisfied with the international response to Ebola. In Liberia, that number was 13 percent.

Healthcare is the No. 1 need

GeoPoll also asked respondents, “What help is most needed in your community?” Answer options were: food, healthcare facilities, healthcare workers, money, security, shelter, and water/sanitation.

Responses similar in Liberia and Sierra Leone

In Liberia, healthare facilities was by far the most common answer,
with 30 percent of respondents choosing it. In Liberia, 15 percent of respondents said water and sanitation help was needed most, 15 percent said money, 13 percent said healthcare workers and 13 percent said food.

Montserrado county saw similar responses: 29 percent said healthcare facilities were needed most, 16 percent said water/sanitation were the most pressing needs; 14 percent said food; 12 percent said they needed healthcare workers more than anything else; and 12 percent said money.

Responses show the effects of Ebola are widespread, Elliot said. The need for help with water, sanitation and food was requested just as much
as healthcare workers.

In Sierra Leone, respondents had similar needs: 27 percent said
water and sanitation was their greatest need; 26 percent said healthcare facilities are needed most in their community; 15 percent said money was needed most and 13 percent said food.

Future surveys

Over the next few months GeoPoll plans to work with partners to collect information on knowledge of how Ebola is spread, its symptoms, and more. GeoPoll says it protects the privacy of respondents, and has put extra precautions in place when asking about sensitive health issues such as Ebola.

All mobile phone survey responses are anonymous, according to GeoPoll. When asking questions about the virus, GeoPoll said it includes a message that tells participants it is gathering information about Ebola, and that their responses are confidential. GeoPoll said it displays at the beginning and end of surveys a phone number for the national Ebola hotline that users can call.

“We already know certain countries are more capable of containing Ebola than others,” GeoPoll CEO Eberhard said. “Nigeria had a mini-outbreak in Lagos, but thanks to a strong health system and tracking of patient contacts, the country is now Ebola-free.

“Data should be collected both in already impacted areas and the surrounding countries, because knowledge about what hospitals in which towns are most able to handle an outbreak is hugely important.”

Food insecurity

From their first round of data in Sierra Leone, GeoPoll and World Food Programme found that the two Ebola epicenters, Kailahun and Kenema, are already resorting to extreme measures with food, including restricting portion size and buying less desirable foods, Eberhard said.

“We also found that casual workers in those regions are being paid less for their services than in the surrounding regions, an indication of economic decline,” he said. “Prices for cocoa, one of West Africa’s key exports, are already increasing amid fears Ebola will hit Ghana and the Ivory Coast. Information and action are needed now on these issues so that organizations like the International Monetary Fund can anticipate future global effects.”

Collecting data is challenging in such circumstances. Using mobile phones allows research companies to reach respondents without putting survey collectors at risk.

World Health Organization said there have been 14,098 probable, suspected, and confirmed cases of Ebola, but different models for collecting data would put the number much higher.

Whatever the solution, timeliness is key, Eberhard said. “Accurate data is the cornerstone of taking aggressive and targeted action, and right now is when both data and action are needed most.”