Ebola and Cruising

Anyone know if there is any reason to be concerned with cruising and the rising outbreak of Ebola? We're taking the Dream 4 night 10/27 and watching the news and the spread just worries me. It closed loop out of PC w/stops at Nassau and Castaway Cay.

Please ease my mind...

Ebola is only spread through direct contact (blood, semen, saliva, etc.) with an already infected person. That's from the WHO. I would be more concerned about that gastrointestinal stuff that lurks around cruise ships.

I thought since the beginning that this is another media hype thing... Like swine flu and H1N1.

Hope that helps!

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Just some of my thoughts, thinking about the facts. I'm sure others can make a better emotional appeal to this concern.

Based on current confirmed infection rates, you have a 1 in 1,766,674 chance of being mortally infected (this is assuming you're looking at random chance, ignoring the prevalence of the virus in a small section of the planet, and your absence in that section) . Your chances of being killed by a lightening strike however are 1 in 52,385. Since you're talking about cruising in FL/the Bahamas, what is one of the most lightening prone areas of the globe, and you don't find yourself in Africa, it would seem the contrast in those numbers are really even more extreme when balanced for actual risk rather than random chance.

http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/Ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/index.html

http://www.nsc.org/news_resources/injury_and_death_statistics/Documents/2014-Injury-Facts-43.pdf

Now you aren't traveling to the areas where infection is an issue, but what about those traveling to you? Well, per a US immigration spokesperson last week, less than 100 people per day enter the US from these nations. How many might be on that cruise though, even by several degrees of separation? Let's look at income as a factor, since a cruise is luxury perk afforded to the affluent of the world. The average annual income in the US is $53,143. Liberia? $454 Sierra Leone? $809.

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.PCAP.CD

What about the cruise risk in and of itself? Just like comes up for other disease? Well, it's not different than *many* other things. Disease is occasionally visible on ships because everyone stays together for days. On a plane, when someone with a cold sneezes, only hours later you could be tens of thousands miles from the other person. On a cruise, that person's spouse is next to you at breakfast two days later talking about the illness. When you factor in the extreme sanitation practices on ships now, the likelihood of spreading disease is much less than other means of conveyance, or day to day life outside of your home. This stands true for any infection.

I've been through the years where the AIDS epidemic flew through the world.It was scary,yes,but anything can happen at any given moment to anyone anywhere.I don't let it worry me.I work in a grocery store,and am exposed to all kinds of people every hour,every day.Why panic,enjoy your vacation.don't let this stop you from living your life.I refuse to let this stop me from living my life.;)

Ebola is only spread through direct contact (blood, semen, saliva, etc.) with an already infected person. That's from the WHO. I would be more concerned about that gastrointestinal stuff that lurks around cruise ships.

 

I thought since the beginning that this is another media hype thing... Like swine flu and H1N1.

 

Hope that helps!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

So then that being the case, I'm wondering how the nurse in TX has now tested positive for this disease, who was taking care of the one who recently passed away from it. He/she must not have been taking all precautions...:confused:

So then that being the case, I'm wondering how the nurse in TX has now tested positive for this disease, who was taking care of the one who recently passed away from it. He/she must not have been taking all precautions...:confused:

I'm watching a news program on that right now. Maybe we are dealing with a different strain? Maybe the worker didn't use precautions? I don't know. I still wouldn't worry about the cruise. I'm cruising the Dream in February. I am concerned about cold and flu season, but I'm struggling to find the energy to worry about Ebola (at this point). :)

Probabilities stated in an earlier message will give you a good clue. No sweat! Go enjoy your "Magical Dream" cruise. We will also be on the Disney Dream in February, with follow on cruises in the eastern Med, British Isles, and Alaska.

However, take the normal precautions when traveling.

DCL is over the top about cleaning and disease prevention (largely because of theGI issues that come up.) Any ill CM is confined to his/her cabin until they have a confirmed diagnosis.

As above, the CDC says the Ebola is spread only thru transmission of body fluids. Assuming that's true, a health care worker wouldn't have been totally following ALL precautions. OK, having been a health care worker--infectious disease precautions are a pain and it would be easy to miss something is you are not totally tuned in to being cautious. Gown/glove/mask/booties, take them all off turning them inside out so there is no chance that you touch a surface that has touched a patient, strip off your scrubs and take an antibacterial shower. And that doesn't even touch things like blood specimens!

Enjoy your cruise--no worries.

The worker that became infected WAS wearing all the "protective gear"....this is what is so worrisome....viruses are constantly mutating....there is no reason to believe that this strain of ebola won't mutate into a more contagious form.

I'm watching a news program on that right now. Maybe we are dealing with a different strain? Maybe the worker didn't use precautions? I don't know. I still wouldn't worry about the cruise. I'm cruising the Dream in February. I am concerned about cold and flu season, but I'm struggling to find the energy to worry about Ebola (at this point). :)

We will be on the Carnival Ecstasy in February, didn't even think about cold and flu season...:)

I'm more concerned about being hit by a drunk/inattentive/texting, etc., etc., driver, cold and flu, cancer, my head exploding for no reason, constipation, terrorist attacks, being the target of a stalker, etc., than ebola. I'm not discounting the serious nature of the disease, but I have friends who have been HIV-positive for 25 years (and they're still healthy - YAY!!). Went out to dinner numerous times, kissed them, etc. Haven't gotten so much as a hickey. It's always good to practice good hygiene and be careful about putting dirty hands in mouth, eyes, etc., but I have no qualms about traveling. And above all, if it's my time, it's my time.

I've been through the years where the AIDS epidemic flew through the world.It was scary,yes,but anything can happen at any given moment to anyone anywhere.I don't let it worry me.I work in a grocery store,and am exposed to all kinds of people every hour,every day.Why panic,enjoy your vacation.don't let this stop you from living your life.I refuse to let this stop me from living my life.;)

It is FAR more difficult to catch HIV than Ebola. That said, I don't think the average cruiser needs to worry about Ebola. They are far more likely to catch Influenza, Norwalk Virus, Hepatitis, Tuberculosis, Pneumonia, or even Rabies.

I assure you that Goofy and Pluto have both had their rabies vaccinations ;)

ex techie

The worker that became infected WAS wearing all the "protective gear"....this is what is so worrisome....viruses are constantly mutating....there is no reason to believe that this strain of ebola won't mutate into a more contagious form.

And that worker admits that she may have violated protocols while degloving.

While from a different perspective; hazmat rather than infectious disease, I have seen training on how to properly remove the protective gear, as this is probably the most dangerous time. A local hazmat company, during a "bring your kid to work day" held this training for the kids. The were outfitted in hazmat gear and then sprayed all over with shaving cream. The challenge was to remove all the hazmat gear without ending up with ANY shaving cream on you. Trust me, even for trained adults it is pretty difficult. I've had to set up a decon station on a cruise ship when the fire teams had to respond to a leak in the dry cleaning equipment, and removing the gear was the hardest.

Or légionnaires disease from the air con!

ex techie

Or légionnaires disease from the air con!

 

 

 

 

 

ex techie

I stayed at a hotel that had an outbreak of this a week after my visit last year. Very scary.

I think anyone concerned about ebola should cancel ALL travel plans anywhere in the world by any means of travel: plane, train or cruise.

They should also stop going to ALL stores, movies, concerts, theaters, anywhere people congregate including work.

They need to crawl into bed away from ALL other family members & pull the covers over their heads for the duration of the outbreak.

NOTE: sarcasm

Ebola - over 300,000,000 population in US. 1 known case that was contracted in US.

So many other things are way more likely.

Go enjoy your vacation

If you are a worrier , worry about distracted /Talking/Texting drivers on your drive to the cruise port , it's the real epidemic that is killing us !

I sent DCL a message last week just asking if there were any additional precautions being taken. The truth is that when we board a ship we are in an enclosed area with thousands of other people, most of whom we don't know. While I am not paranoid or anything, I did want to reassure myself that DCL was taking the situation seriously. Here is the response I got:

We look forward to your upcoming sailing on the Disney Fantasy and

appreciate your concern. Please know that the health and safety or our

Guests and Crew Members are of paramount importance to us. We are aware of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) travel warning urging U.S. residents to avoid nonessential travel to Liberia, Guinea,

and Sierra Leone due to the outbreaks of Ebola and are following the

situation very closely. While we do not have any Crew Members from

these countries, we do question all Crew about their recent travels. In

addition, we regularly screen our Guests and Crew Members for a variety

health conditions.

Thank you again for your email and I hope this information proves

helpful. We look forward to having an opportunity to welcome you aboard

soon.

Kind regards,

Andrea Stoffel

Executive Guest Correspondent

Disney Cruise Line

Hope this helps some...

Rgds

Eric

appreciate it

I sent DCL a message last week just asking if there were any additional precautions being taken. The truth is that when we board a ship we are in an enclosed area with thousands of other people, most of whom we don't know. While I am not paranoid or anything, I did want to reassure myself that DCL was taking the situation seriously. Here is the response I got:

 

We look forward to your upcoming sailing on the Disney Fantasy and

appreciate your concern. Please know that the health and safety or our

Guests and Crew Members are of paramount importance to us. We are aware of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) travel warning urging U.S. residents to avoid nonessential travel to Liberia, Guinea,

and Sierra Leone due to the outbreaks of Ebola and are following the

situation very closely. While we do not have any Crew Members from

these countries, we do question all Crew about their recent travels. In

addition, we regularly screen our Guests and Crew Members for a variety

health conditions.

 

Thank you again for your email and I hope this information proves

helpful. We look forward to having an opportunity to welcome you aboard

soon.

 

Kind regards,

 

Andrea Stoffel

Executive Guest Correspondent

Disney Cruise Line

 

Hope this helps some...

 

Rgds

 

Eric

Thanks for posting the note from DCL!!

We will be on the Carnival Ecstasy in February, didn't even think about cold and flu season...:)

Oh my freting comes from a cruise I took about 7 years ago. I didn't get enough sleep in the days leading up to our cruise, and it probably compromised my immune system. Add in the jet lag and I picked up something on the ship that I probably could have fought off easily.

I'm more concerned about my boys and I catching the flu. We are travelling internationally from summer to winter and will be exposed to several strains of flu that we don't have immunity to. I am starting my boys on chewable multivitamins just to boost their systems and putting a real focus on frequent hand washing and discouraging them from touching their own faces.

Having said that, I have checked our travel insurance policy about what happens if a pandemic is declared (no cover) and if we think its too risky then we simply won't go and will take the hit financially. I honestly don't think that will happen though.