>> Sreenivasan: THIS WEEK MARKED

THE ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE

ONGOING EBOLA OUTBREAK IN THE

CONGO.

SO FAR, MORE THAN 2,600 CASES

HAVE BEEN REPORTED AND 1,700

DEATHS.

I RECENTLY SAT DOWN WITH RICHARD

PRESTON.

HIS LATEST BOOK, "CRISIS IN THE

RED ZONE," REPORTS ON THE EBOLA

EPIDEMIC AND HOW OUR

INTERCONNECTED WORLD IS MAKING

IT DIFFICULT TO CONTAIN.

>> WELL, IT'S REALLY BECAUSE OF

MOTHER NATURE.

EBOLA IS A KIND OF WARNING SHOT

ACROSS OUR BOW.

IT'S AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT ARE

KNOWN AS EMERGING VIRUSES, WHICH

ARE VIRUSES THAT ARE ESSENTIALLY

LEAKING OUT OF THE TROUBLED

ECOSYSTEMS OF THE PLANET AND

GETTING INTO HUMANS.

WE DON'T HAVE ANY IMMUNITY TO

THESE EMERGING VIRUSES.

SO, THEY CAN BE EXTREMELY

DEADLY, HIGHLY INFECTIOUS, AND

WE REALLY DON'T HAVE GOOD

MEDICAL DEFENSES AGAINST THEM.

>> Sreenivasan: WHERE DO THEY

START FROM?

>> WELL, THEY START FROM

ANIMALS, WILD ANIMALS,

TYPICALLY.

NOW, A VIRUS IS A TINY PARASITE

THAT NEEDS TO HAVE A HOST.

IT CAN ONLY MAKE COPIES OF

ITSELF INSIDE THE CELLS OF SOME

HOST.

AND ONE OF THE BIGGEST POTENTIAL

HOSTS ON THE PLANET RIGHT NOW IS

THE HUMAN SPECIES.

WE ARE-- THERE ARE 7.5 BILLION

OF US, AND, INCREASINGLY IN

HISTORY, HUMANS ARE GATHERING

INTO THESE GIGANTIC URBAN

MEGALOPOLISES, SUPERCITIES.

TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE, NEW YORK

SUPERCITY, WHERE WE ARE, IS

ABOUT 20 MILLION PEOPLE.

NOW, THAT'S ABOUT THE POPULATION

OF FLORIDA.

SO, IF YOU TAKE EVERYBODY IN

FLORIDA AND YOU CRAM THEM INTO

ONE CITY, AND EVERYBODY IS

BREATHING ONE ANOTHER'S AIR AND

TOUCHING ONE ANOTHER, AND IF AN

EMERGING VIRUS FROM A

RAINFOREST ORGANISM GETS INTO A

HUMAN POPULATION LIKE THAT, AND

THERE'S NO IMMUNITY TO THE

THING, AND IT'S EXTREMELY

INFECTIOUS AND HAS A HIGH

MORTALITY RATE, THEN WHAT YOU'RE

GOING TO SEE IS AN IMMENSE

CHALLENGE TO THE MEDICAL SYSTEM

AND TO EVERYTHING.

>> Sreenivasan: THE GOOD NEWS

ABOUT EBOLA IS THAT THERE SEEMS

TO BE A VACCINE THAT IS WORKING

AND IS PRETTY EFFECTIVE.

WHY CAN'T WE GET THAT VACCINE TO

ALL OF THESE PLACES THAT ARE

HAVING THESE OUTBREAKS?

>> WELL, YOU KNOW, IT'S CRAZY.

SO, THERE'S THIS BIG OUTBREAK OF

EBOLA GOING ON IN EASTERN CONGO

RIGHT NOW, AND 160,000 OR MORE

VACCINATIONS HAVE BEEN MADE.

PEOPLE ARE GETTING THE VACCINE,

BUT THE VIRUS CONTINUES TO

SPREAD.

AND THE DOCTORS AND MEDICAL

WORKERS CAN'T TRACE THE CASES.

A LOT OF THE CASES THAT ARE

COMING UP ARE BRAND NEW.

EBOLA HAS BEEN IN THE HUMAN

POPULATION OF EASTERN CONGO NOW

FOR MORE THAN A YEAR, AND I

THINK THERE'S A QUESTION-- SO,

THE VACCINATION STRATEGY JUST

ISN'T WORKING EVEN THOUGH IT'S A

GREAT VACCINE.

BUT EBOLA IS SEEMINGLY MORE AND

MORE ROOTED IN THE HUMAN

POPULATION.

AND I THINK THERE IS A QUESTION

AS TO WHETHER EBOLA COULD

CHANGE AND EVENTUALLY BECOME

ESTABLISHED AS A PERMANENT HUMAN

DISEASE.

>> Sreenivasan: WOW.

WHAT-- THAT'S STARTLING.

WHAT ARE THE SORT OF CULTURAL

IMPEDIMENTS NOW TO TRYING TO

TREAT EBOLA?

I MEAN, WHETHER IT'S CIVIL WARS

OR WHETHER IT'S SOCIAL MEDIA,

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES THAT

WE'RE FACING IN TRYING TO GET A

POPULATION ARMED WITH THE

INFORMATION TO BE ABLE TO SAY,

"HERE'S WHAT YOU SHOULD DO,

HERE'S WHAT YOU SHOULD LOOK FOR,

HERE'S WHERE YOU SHOULD GO"?

>> LET'S TALK ABOUT THE AMERICAN

POPULATION.

LET'S TALK ABOUT NEW YORK CITY

BECAUSE THE PROBLEM OF EDUCATION

IS JUST AS DEEP HERE IN NEW YORK

AS IT IS ANYWHERE ELSE ON THE

PLANET.

SO, I DID A LITTLE SURVEY, AND I

FOUND OUT THAT IN THE NEW YORK

CITY HOSPITALS, THERE ARE A

TOTAL OF EIGHT SO-CALLED "RED

ZONE BEDS" FOR PATIENTS WHO ARE

INFECTED WITH A HIGHLY

INFECTIOUS, LETHAL VIRUS FOR

WHICH THERE IS NO CURE AND NO

VACCINE.

ONLY EIGHT BEDS.

AND THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH TRAINED

HOSPITAL PERSONNEL TO HANDLE

MORE THAN ABOUT EIGHT PATIENTS.

WHEN THERE WAS ONE PATIENT WITH

EBOLA AT BELLEVUE HOSPITAL IN

NEW YORK CITY, THERE WAS A HUGE

TEAM THAT TREATED THE

INDIVIDUAL.

THEY SPENT MILLIONS OF DOLLARS

SAVING THAT PATIENT'S LIFE.

NOW, WHAT IF AN EMERGING VIRUS--

I'M NOT NECESSARILY TALKING

ABOUT EBOLA, BUT SOMETHING

EBOLA-LIKE, AND THERE ARE MANY

OTHER KINDS OF VIRUSES THAT ARE

OUT THERE LURKING IN NATURE THAT

ARE MAKING THESE SO-CALLED

"CROSS-SPECIES JUMPS."

THEY'RE COMING OUT OF ECOSYSTEMS

AND GETTING INTO HUMANITY.

SO, WHAT IF WE HAD 1,000

PATIENTS IN NEW YORK CITY WITH A

REALLY HOT VIRUS?

WHAT IF WE HAD 10,000 PATIENTS?

WHAT YOU WOULD SEE IN A CITY

LIKE NEW YORK IN THE DEVELOPED

WORLD IS EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED

IN, YOU KNOW, CITIES IN WEST

AFRICA WHEN EBOLA GOT INTO THEM.

YOU WOULD SEE MEDICAL PERSONNEL

RISKING THEIR LIVES AND

SACRIFICING THEIR LIVES, A THIN

LINE OF DEFENSE.

THE MEDICAL PEOPLE, THE DOCTORS,

THE NURSES, WOULD REALLY BE

DYING.

THEY WOULD BE GOING INTO

HORRIFIC CONDITIONS TO TRY TO

SAVE PATIENTS, JUST AS WAS DONE

IN AFRICA.

AND THEN, YOU WOULD HAVE-- YOU

CAN JUST IMAGINE THE

POSSIBILITIES.

IN A WAY, THEY'RE SORT OF HARD

TO IMAGINE.

BUT YOU WOULD HAVE PEOPLE TRYING

TO LEAVE THE CITY IN LARGE

NUMBERS.

YOU WOULD HAVE PEOPLE FLEEING

FROM HOSPITALS, AS HAPPENED IN

AFRICA.

NOBODY WOULD WANT TO GO TO THE

HOSPITALS BECAUSE THEY WOULD BE

HOT.

AND, SO, PEOPLE WOULD BE DYING

IN APARTMENTS.

AND THE WAY IT WORKS IN NEW YORK

CITY IS THAT THE FIRE DEPARTMENT

HAS SPECIAL HAZ-TAG TEAMS THAT

ARE TRAINED TO GO IN AND BRING

OUT A BIOHAZARDOUS PATIENT OR A

BIOHAZARDOUS CORPSE AND DELIVER

IT PROPERLY.

>> Sreenivasan: WHAT ABOUT THE

MISEDUCATION, THE RUMORS, THE

CONSPIRACIES THAT KIND OF IMPEDE

THAT EDUCATION FOR THE REST OF

US, THE CONSUMER CLASS?

AND WE'RE WE'RE SEEING THESE

CHALLENGES ON MUCH MORE BASIC

VACCINATIONS TOWARDS CHILDREN.

BUT WHEN YOU ADD THAT LAYER OF

FEAR, THAT "OH, MY GOSH, THIS IS

A DEADLY VIRUS, IT'S AFFECTING

ADULTS OF ALL TYPES AND SHAPES

AND SIZES," IT CAN BE WORSE.

>> YES, IT IS.

AND, UNFORTUNATELY, SOCIAL MEDIA

HAS PLAYED A-- I THINK A VERY

DAMAGING ROLE IN THESE

SITUATIONS.

JUST TO GIVE YOU AN EXAMPLE: IN

THE CONGO OUTBREAK OF EBOLA,

WHICH IS GOING ON NOW, PEOPLE

THERE ARE VERY WELL-EDUCATED

PEOPLE.

THEY HAVE ACCESS TO THE

INTERNET.

THEY READ "LA MONDE," THE MEDIA

FROM PARIS, AND THEY USE A LOT

OF SOCIAL MEDIA.

AND A LOT OF RUMORS GO AROUND ON

SOCIAL MEDIA THAT ARE NOT

CORRECT ABOUT HOW YOU CAN

PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST EBOLA,

OR, YOU KNOW, PARANOID RUMORS

ABOUT THE DOCTORS THAT ARE

TREATING EBOLA.

AND I FEAR OR SUSPECT THAT THE

SAME THING WOULD BE GOING ON IN

THE UNITED STATES IF A

BIO-SAFETY LEVEL-FOUR HOT VIRUS

GOT GOING IN THE POPULATION.

>> Sreenivasan: THE FRONTLINE

PHYSICIANS AND AID WORKERS THAT

ARE IN THE FIELD, OFTENTIMES--

ESPECIALLY IN AREAS LIKE

AFRICA-- THE NARRATIVE IS THAT,

WELL, THE AMERICANS OR THE

EUROPEANS COME IN AND THEY'RE

SAVING ALL THE AFRICANS.

BUT REALLY, IN YOUR BOOKS, WHAT

YOU'RE SHOWING ALSO IS THAT IT'S

AFRICAN DOCTORS THAT ARE DOING

THE HARD, HORRIBLE WORK, RIGHT?

>> ABSOLUTELY.

YOU KNOW, THERE'S THIS CLICHE

THAT, YOU KNOW, THE PEOPLE FROM

THE DEVELOPED WORLD, THE WHITE

PEOPLE, COME INTO AFRICA AND

THEY SAVE HAPLESS AFRICANS.

BUT "CRISIS IN THE RED ZONE" IS

ABOUT SOMETHING DIFFERENT.

I TAKE A MAGNIFYING CLASS, AND I

PUT IT ON A SMALL, FORGOTTEN

HOSPITAL IN AFRICA THAT WAS

DEVASTATED BY EBOLA.

AND IN THAT HOSPITAL, YOU HAD

AMERICAN DOCTORS AND MEDICAL

PEOPLE, SCIENTISTS AND AFRICAN

SCIENTISTS, DOCTORS AND MEDICAL

PEOPLE FIGHTING THIS DREADFUL

VIRUS IN THE HOSPITAL, WHICH

KILLED A LOT OF THE STAFF.

THEY WERE PUTTING THEIR LIVES ON

THE LINE, OFTEN SACRIFICING

THEIR LIVES, GOING INTO

SITUATIONS WHERE THEY KNEW THEY

WERE PROBABLY GOING TO DIE, IN

AN EFFORT TO SAVE A PATIENT'S

LIFE.

>> Sreenivasan: IS THERE A

LESSON WE CAN LEARN FROM WHAT

HAPPENS?

I MEAN, SOME OF THE ETHICAL

DILEMMAS AND CHALLENGES?

IF YOU'VE GOT A VACCINE, DO YOU

SAVE A DOCTOR?

DO YOU SAVE A PATIENT?

>> IN THE FACE OF A CRISIS, THE

MEDICAL PEOPLE AT THIS LITTLE

HOSPITAL FACED TERRIBLE ETHICAL

CHOICES, CHOICES THAT NO DOCTOR

SHOULD EVER HAVE TO MAKE;

CHOICES IN WHICH, YOU KNOW, THE

HIPPOCRATIC OATH SAYS, "FIRST,

DO NO HARM," BUT THESE WERE

CHOICES WHERE THE DOCTORS, NO

MATTER WHAT THEY DID, THEY WERE

GOING TO CAUSE HARM, AND IT WAS

A LIFE-OR-DEATH CRISIS.

>> Sreenivasan: RICHARD

PRESTON IS THE AUTHOR.

THE BOOK IS CALLED "CRISIS IN

THE RED ZONE."

THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

>> GREAT TO BE WITH YOU.