Public Risk Management

Our guest on the latest episode of PRIMA Podcasts is Melanie Bennett from United Educators. Melanie shares some of the major concerns associated with the current Zika virus outbreak, particularly as it relates to learning institutions. Melanie explains that because the Zika virus is transmitted by mosquitoes, it is spreading very quickly between countries and continents, and there is currently no vaccine. Fortunately, the symptoms are generally mild (red eyes, fever, joint pain and rash) and the virus only stays in the bloodstream for about a week. However, the major concern is that both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have identified a link between Zika and microcephaly, which causes very serious birth defects. Specific Concerns For Educational Institutions K-12 and higher education institutions should be particularly concerned about Zika because of their study abroad programs. The CDC has issued level-two travel alerts for countries with an outb