en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_effects_of_the_Ebola_crisis

‘The Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa has had a large effect on the culture of most of the West African countries. Many West Africans have a distrust in western and modern medicine, and rely mostly on traditional healers and witch doctors, who use herbal remedies, massage, chant, and witchcraft to cure just about any ailment. Africans also have a traditional solidarity of standing by the sick, which is contrary to the safe care of a EVD patient.[1][2][3]

‘Africans also traditionally use folklore and mythical literature, often passed on verbally from one generation to the next to “explain the interrelationships of all things that exist”. However the folklore and songs are not only of traditional or ancient historical origins, but are often about current events that have affected the community. Additionally, folklore and music will often take opposing sides of any story. Thus early in the Ebola epidemic, the song “White Ebola” was released by a diaspora based group and centers on the general distrust of “outsiders” who may be intentionally infecting people. [4][5]…’

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http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/ending-ebola-15-depends-locals-foreign-aid-28121449

‘… Some villagers suspect the moon-suited Ebola doctors are bringing the virus to their communities, instead of saving them from it. “We cannot control the outbreak if there is no trust from the population,” said Brice de la Vigne, director of operations for Doctors Without Borders in Belgium. De la Vigne said convincing West Africans to change deeply engrained but risky burial practices or to seek help from Western doctors instead of traditional healers will also be difficult. “We need to spend a lot more time listening to the people and readapting our messages because there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to this,” he said.’

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Let’s build a future where people are no longer dying for lack of healthcare knowledge – Join HIFA: www.hifa2015.org