By JACOB LOPEZ
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
Beko Mantein
LAGUNA VISTA – While a man in Dallas fights for his life against the Ebola virus, thousands are dying in West Africa.
Beko Mantein, a pharmacist and member of Christ’s Harbor Church in Laguna Vista wants to help by donating items that will help combat the spread of Ebola in Liberia. Specifically, Mantein is hoping that the public can help by donating necessary medical items such as personal protective equipment for medical workers and basic medicines for patients.
Those wishing to contribute can call Christ’s Harbor Church in Laguna Vista at (956) 943-5595.
Mantein is a native of Liberia, where the virus has hit the hardest.
In a letter to the public pleading for assistance, Mantein writes, “The virus is a hemorrhagic fever that is killing thousands of people in three West African countries …”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone have a total Ebola case count of 7,470. The virus has killed 3,431, and there are 4,087 confirmed laboratory cases of Ebola.
He writes, “It has wiped out entire families, including babies, in my tiny West African country with a population of about 4 million people.”
In late August, the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that the virus could infect more than 20,000 people. Facing such staggering statistics and knowing the effects of the disease, the recent Ebola news making headlines in the States has hit close to home for Mantein, who has family in Liberia – including his mother and father as well as grandparents and cousins.
“It’s not just helping my country, but it’s a way of helping my family, too, because it continues to get worse,” he said of the assistance he seeks, adding, “so it’s a little bit more personal for me.”
Mantein tries to speak with his family throughout the week and keeps in constant contact with them.
“It’s very scary, because … I talk to my family (and) they are losing neighbors,” he adds.
Right now, in the Ebola-stricken countries, it’s not uncommon to see truckloads of bodies being carried off.
“My auntie, she lost…I think four of her co-workers, because she’s a nurse,” he said, sharing that his aunt had to quit her job because of the severity of the problem, which has even led to schools and businesses closing. “It’s almost like a war zone. There’s no social gathering.”
“Even now, if you have fever or any illness, people think you have Ebola, and no one wants to help you,” Mantein said, explaining how the spread of the virus is affecting every aspect of the Liberia’s hospital care.
“There’s pregnant women that are dying from childbirth, because there are people thinking, ‘Oh maybe you have Ebola,’ so no one can touch them,” said Mantein.
“I talked to my mom yesterday,” said Mantein on Tuesday. According to his mother, Mantein’s grandfather is experiencing illness but is unable to receive medical treatment.
“It just broke my heart,” he said about hearing the news of his grandfather, who’s in his 80s. “It’s not just the Ebola, but it’s the fear.”
Mantein believes his grandfather’s situation is an example of Ebola’s devastating effects as not only a disease but a source of hysteria. For instance, Ebola-stricken people – even individuals who show Ebola-like symptoms but have not been diagnosed, such as Mantein’s grandfather – are sometimes refused treatment from medical personnel who’d rather not come into contact with someone who’s potentially contagious.
To explain the scale of the outbreak in West Africa, Mantein cited the single confirmed case in the U.S. and the happenings there as authorities and health officials continue to quarantine those who are considered high-risk. Up to another 100 were at one point being monitored for symptoms, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
In Liberia, the population is roughly 4 million, according to Mantein, while the population of Texas is approximately 26.4 million, according to the 2013 U.S. Census estimate.
Liberia had 3,500 cases within a matter of three to four months.
Mantein cites a shortage of healthcare workers, especially doctors, in Liberia as one of the primary causes that such viruses can grow out of control.
“In a country of 4 million people, you just have — I think — about 220 doctors in the entire country,” he explained.
The healthcare infrastructure is “completely damaged,” said Mantein. “We went through 14 years of civil war, so everything is damaged. You don’t have that many hospitals.”
Also, Mantein said he can think of “maybe 20 hospitals, off the top of my head,” throughout the entire country.
Furthermore, the hospitals aren’t equipped to quarantine, because there simply isn’t enough space.
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