The FINANCIAL — Boston, MA – Most people in the U.S. (81%) believe Ebola is likely to spread from a person sick with the disease and showing symptoms, a Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH)/SSRS poll shows. Further, 85% say someone would be likely to get Ebola if a symptomatic person sneezed or coughed on them. Despite the tragic death of an Ebola patient in Dallas, most people in the U.S. (80%) think someone in their community would likely survive the infectious disease if they received immediate medical care.
The nationally representative poll of 1,004 adults was conducted October 8-12, 2014 by researchers at HSPH and SSRS, an independent research company. The margin of error for total respondents is +/-3.6 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
“In this time of public concern about how likely Ebola is to spread, it’s important that hospitals can show they are well prepared for cases so we don’t lose public confidence in the ability to treat Ebola patients and handle the outbreak,” said Gillian SteelFisher, deputy director of the Harvard Opinion Research Program (HORP) and research scientist in the HSPH Department of Health Policy and Management.
Public believes Ebola is likely to spread from symptomatic patients by multiple routes
More than four out of five people (81%) said Ebola is likely to spread from a person with symptoms to others, including approximately half (49%) who say it is “very likely” and another 32% who say it is “somewhat likely” to spread. Nearly all (95%) agree that a person is likely to get Ebola if they come into contact with bodily fluids of a symptomatic person, including 86% who say it is “very likely” and 9% who say it is “somewhat likely”, according to the President and Fellows of Harvard College.
Most also say a person is likely to get Ebola if they touch objects or surfaces that have been in contact with bodily fluids of a symptomatic person (88%) or if they are sneezed or coughed on by a symptomatic person (85%). These data suggest that the public currently sees Ebola as likely spread by multiple routes, including one that the World Health Organization (WHO) has said is not likely – sneezing and coughing.
People’s concern about an outbreak in the U.S. and their own family’s risk has increased in the last few weeks
Poll results suggesting the public sees Ebola as likely to spread from one person to another may be contributing to the fact that now more than half of adults (52%) are concerned that there will be a large outbreak of Ebola inside the U.S. within the next 12 months, which is an increase from our August poll when approximately four in ten (39%) reported the same. Further, more than a third (38%) are now concerned that they or someone in their immediate family may get sick with Ebola over the next year, which is an increase from about a quarter (26%) who said this in our August poll.
Public remains optimistic about the effectiveness of medical care for Ebola
Four in five (80%) say that a person in their community would be likely to survive Ebola if they got immediate medical care, including about a third (35%) who say a person would be “very likely” to survive, according to the President and Fellows of Harvard College.
To date, the media reports that two people infected with Ebola overseas have entered the U.S. for treatment and survived. More recently, a patient in Dallas who began showing symptoms while in the U.S. and sought care at an emergency room has died. A nurse who cared for this patient has also tested positive for Ebola and she is undergoing treatment.
More than half the public believes home-based quarantine would be difficult for them
The media reports that public health officials have quarantined people exposed to Ebola, even though they have not shown symptoms, in order to prevent the spread of the disease. Ebola symptoms can take up to three weeks to show, according to the CDC. More than half of people (58%) say that it would be difficult for them to be quarantined in their home for three weeks if they were exposed to Ebola but did not know yet whether or not they were infected. This figure includes more than a quarter who say it would be “very difficult” (28%) and 30% who say “somewhat difficult”, according to the President and Fellows of Harvard College.
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