n-liberia/
While governments and nonprofits have been stymied in their efforts tostymie the spread of the Ebola virus, Firestone Tire & Rubber has apparentlysucceeded among its 80,000 Liberian employees and their families. When awife of a Firestone employee showed up ill after caring for an Ebola victim,the staff of the evil capitalist corporation leaped into action.
"None of us had any Ebola experience," he says. They scoured the Internetfor information about how to treat Ebola. They cleared out a building on thehospital grounds and set up an isolation ward. They grabbed a bunch ofhazmat suits for dealing with chemical spills at the rubber factory and gavethem to the hospital staff. The suits worked just as well for Ebola cases.
Firestone immediately quarantined the family of the woman. Like so manyEbola patients, she died soon after being admitted to the ward. But no oneelse at Firestone got infected: not her family and not the workers whotransported, treated and cared for her.
Company employees built a 23-bed isolation facility, and in recent monthstreated 48 patients (mostly from outside the rubber plantation), managed tosave 18 of them, and were able to prevent the spread of the disease. Theyalso launched a door-to-door education campaign.
NPR's report puts emphasis on Firestone's financial resources, but I thinkthey miss the "X" factor that causes these private-sector employees tosucceed outside of their bailiwick: They're accustomed to setting goals,achieving results and being rewarded based on actual accomplishments. Inaddition, they're innovative, and know that one must often improvise andcreate rapid prototypes on the way to the ultimate product.
The sick and suffering people of Africa don't need more political speeches,government press releases and empty promises.
They need more Firestones.
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