VOA标准英语2014--利比里亚努力发现、隔离疑似埃博拉病例

 

Liberia Struggles to Find, Isolate¹ Suspected Ebola Cases 利比里亚努力发现、隔离疑似埃博拉病例

MONROVIA—

The Ebola caseload continues to grow in Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, even as more people accept the disease and try to stay safe. Health workers are struggling to identify and isolate the sick before they can infect others.

The outbreak has paralyzed the country’s public health system, and existing Ebola treatment units are having to turn suspected cases away. And health volunteers are now even going door-to-door looking for the sick.

There was a brief celebration amid all the sickness and death when twelve Ebola survivors² were released from the government-run ELWA-2 treatment unit.

Deputy Health Minister Tolbert Nyensuah said they are making progress every day in Monrovia but added to that the struggle is far from over.

“The fact is that transmission is still going on. I’m not saying that transmission has been broken. No, I cannot deceive the world,” said Nyensuah.

In an effort to outflank the virus health volunteers have started doing rounds in Monrovia’s West Point shantytown. They don’t use the word "Ebola" and introduce themselves casually³.

“We are here on health matters,” said one in a group of volunteers stopping at a local home. “We want to know as to whether you have any sick persons. Somebody suffering from malaria⁴, fever, typhoid, pressure?”

A resident responded that there were no sick people in the home.

It's the height of the malaria and typhoid season, and those people need care, but Ebola also has similar symptoms. Suspected cases must be found and taken to isolation⁵, the volunteers say.

Back at the area’s health center, the waiting room is near empty. Staff say people are scared to come, scared it may be contaminated or that they may be taken to isolation.

Contact tracers deliver their reports. They have just visited about 150 people related to 30 suspected Ebola victims. Supervisor⁶ Marie Hiding says these daily follow-ups are chipping away at resistance.

“Because when you see someone going to your house every day [asking] ‘oh how are you coming on? Are you sick today? No.’ They will be happy to see us because they see that we care for them and we are concerned.”

The government lifted the quarantine on West Point on August 30.

Authorities barricaded⁷ the area after a mob attacked the holding center for suspected Ebola patients on August 17. The quarantine led to panic and was criticized as counterproductive.

But Liberia’s information minister, Lewis Brown, defended it.

“There was a level of denial that needed, in our mind, shock therapy, that needed to be awakened⁸ to the fact that 'look, this is deadly. This is serious. This is no hanky-panky business.'”

But as resistance fades, another challenge is amplified⁹. Where can sick people go? Ebola treatment units in the capital are full. Doctors Without Borders is expanding one of the units to add 280 beds. Other agencies are building five more units to open later this month.

1 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。

2 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

3 casually   

adv.漠不关心地，无动于衷地，不负责任地

参考例句：

• She remarked casually that she was changing her job.她当时漫不经心地说要换工作。
• I casually mentioned that I might be interested in working abroad.我不经意地提到我可能会对出国工作感兴趣。

4 malaria   

n.疟疾

参考例句：

• He had frequent attacks of malaria.他常患疟疾。
• Malaria is a kind of serious malady.疟疾是一种严重的疾病。

5 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

6 supervisor   

n.监督人，管理人，检查员，督学，主管，导师

参考例句：

• Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说，我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
• He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。

7 barricaded   

设路障于，以障碍物阻塞( barricade的过去式和过去分词 )； 设路障[防御工事]保卫或固守

参考例句：

• The police barricaded the entrance. 警方在入口处设置了路障。
• The doors had been barricaded. 门都被堵住了。

8 awakened   

v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到

参考例句：

• She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 amplified   

放大，扩大( amplify的过去式和过去分词 )； 增强； 详述

参考例句：

• He amplified on his remarks with drawings and figures. 他用图表详细地解释了他的话。
• He amplified the whole course of the incident. 他详述了事件的全过程。