VOA标准英语2014--给埃博拉护理者提供更好防护服

 

Better Protective Suit Sought for Ebola Caregivers 给埃博拉护理者提供更好防护服

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND— 

A team from a university in Maryland is working to improve protective equipment for health professionals battling the Ebola epidemic¹ — 329 of whom have died of the disease to date, according to the World Health Organization.

The Ebola virus is transmitted through contact with an infected person's bodily fluids. To protect themselves, doctors and nurses must wear special suits that isolate² them from the virus.  

But in some cases, said Rich Lamporte, vice³ president of the global health organization Jhpiego, the suit is part of the problem.  

“We found it to be of much higher risk than they need to be, primarily because of the process of taking it off puts the health care workers at risk,” he said.

Lamporte said safe removal of the current suit requires about 20 steps, which creates opportunity for error. And West Africa's hot, humid climate makes it uncomfortable for health workers to spend more than 40 minutes inside the airtight suit.

Safety, comfort

So the call went out from Jhpiego and Johns Hopkins University for a better, safer, more comfortable design. More than 70 people took part in the Ebola Design Challenge — students, health professionals, even a wedding gown designer.

"The wedding gown and the Ebola suit have a lot more in common than one would think," said Jill Andrews, the wedding gown expert. "They both are multilayered garments that require a lot of diligence to remove. Being a person that is a pattern maker⁴ and also knowing how garments are made and constructed, I knew that I can contribute."

That's the idea behind the challenge, said Youseph Yazdi, executive director of The Johns Hopkins Center for Bioengineering Innovation & Design in Baltimore.

“To solve the problem, you need all different perspectives at the table," he said. "If we just address it from an engineering or technical perspective, the design will be a failure.”

The Hopkins team entered a design based on ideas in a separate Ebola suit competition sponsored by the U.S. government.  It was recently chosen as a semifinalist. One of the team's improvements was to the headset, which currently requires goggles⁵ and two surgical⁶ masks.

Less face touching⁷

Tim Campbell, a Hopkins researcher, said the team "wanted to minimize the amount of face touching that went on in the removal or doffing⁸ process. So we switched to this version with a head covering system. We installed the vents⁹ in the side of the mask.”  

Hopkins bioengineering student Erin Reisfeld said she was excited to be on the volunteer team.

“Our program has a global health aspect, too, already," she said. "So a lot of us are very passionate¹⁰ about helping¹¹ out the developing world.”

The Hopkins team's goal is ambitious: to create a new, low-cost Ebola suit in a matter of months, not years.

1 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

2 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

5 goggles   

n.护目镜

参考例句：

• Skiers wear goggles to protect their eyes from the sun.滑雪者都戴上护目镜使眼睛不受阳光伤害。
• My swimming goggles keep steaming up so I can't see.我的护目镜一直有水雾，所以我看不见。

6 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

7 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

8 doffing   

n.下筒，落纱v.脱去，（尤指）脱帽( doff的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The sige of the package in use determines the frequency of doffing. 所用卷装的尺寸决定了落纱的次数。 来自辞典例句
• Obstruction in the movement of Aprons during doffing in modern cards. 新型梳棉机在落卷时皮板输送带（或皮圈，围裙）运行受阻。 来自互联网

9 vents   

（气体、液体等进出的）孔、口( vent的名词复数 )； （鸟、鱼、爬行动物或小哺乳动物的）肛门； 大衣等的)衩口； 开衩

参考例句：

• He always vents his anger on the dog. 他总是拿狗出气。
• The Dandelion Patch is the least developed of the four active vents. “蒲公英区”在这四个活裂口中是发育最差的一个。

10 passionate   

adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的

参考例句：

• He is said to be the most passionate man.据说他是最有激情的人。
• He is very passionate about the project.他对那个项目非常热心。

11 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。