UF medical anthropologist Dr. Sharon Abramowitz was interviewed in Nature regarding the Ebola crisis. We are proud to have one of our faculty provide an informed voice in this global discussion. Highlights of the interview:
You definitely need anthropologists to help the scientific community to incorporate local insights, capacities and perspectives into a robust disease-containment effort. There is fundamentally a breakdown right now between the conversations that are happening at the local level and at the national level.
[…] In absence of definitive answers, local populations are seeking solutions for themselves. For instance, there is an emerging black market in survivors’ blood. But that raises some public-health issues. It’s important to be mindful of the local solutions that people are generating to anticipate other issues that might arise.