埃博拉疫情

 　　Rob: Hello I'm Rob. Welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm joined today by Feifei. Hello Feifei.

　　Feifei: Hello, Rob.

　　Rob: Today we're talking about quite a controversial subject: the use of experimental drugs to treat disease. And, as always, you'll learn some vocabulary – so you can talk about the topic too.

　　Feifei: Experimental drugs are medicines which are still being tested – they haven't yet been officially approved. And experimental drugs are a very hot topic with the recent cases of Ebola in West Africa.

　　Rob: Ebola is caused by a virus for which there is no cure yet, and the mortality rate is high. The mortality rate is the proportion of people in a particular group who actually die of the disease.

　　Feifei: Hundreds of people have been infected in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone and over half have died.

　　Rob: So – the World Health Organisation¹ decided² to allow the use of experimental drugs on people with the virus.

　　Feifei: This is something very risky³. The drug might cause unexpected changes in the body and make the patient worse. These are what we call side effects.

　　Rob: But before we talk any more about experimental drugs, let's go for our usual question. So Feifei, how much do you know about the Ebola virus?

　　Feifei: I'm afraid I don't know very much, but I have been following it on the news.

　　Rob: OK. Well, maybe you'll have to have a guess on this question. The virus Ebola got its name after a river in the northern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. But when was it discovered? Was it in:

　　a) 1966

　　b) 1976 or

　　c) 1986

　　Feifei: Well, I'm not really sure but I'm gonna go with answer (b) 1976.

　　Rob: Well, we'll have the answer at the end of the programme. Now, let's get back to our topic – experimental drugs. The World Health Organisation (the WHO)

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　　announced they would allow the use of these drugs on humans, but… only under certain conditions.

　　Feifei: What are the conditions?

　　Rob: Well, with the answer is Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, who works for the WHO. Which word does she use to mean the patient gives permission for the drug to be used?

　　Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, from the World Health Organisation:

　　Transparency about all aspects of care, informed consent, freedom of choice, confidentiality⁴, respect for person and preservation⁵ of dignity, and with the involvement of the community.

　　Feifei: The word for permission was 'consent'. And 'informed consent' was one of the conditions.

　　Rob: 'Informed consent' means permission given by the patient after they've been told of the risks of using the drug.

　　Feifei: I wonder what would happen if it didn't work or if the patient had a bad reaction – might they sue⁶ the doctor?

　　Rob: That's a very interesting point. The Health Minister of Liberia, Walter Gwenigale, has already said that people won't be allowed to sue if the drug doesn't work or if it makes them worse. Listen to what he says now and see if you can identify the word he uses to mean being 'legally responsible' for something.

　　Walter Gwenigale , Health Minister of Liberia:

　　We are not just going to take them and start using them. It's an experimental drug so people have to sign a waiver and ask us to give it to them. Because it's not just like a drug that is for general use. If you want us to try the drug on you, you have to say that we are not liable⁷ for anything that happens to you as a consequence of receiving the drug.

　　Feifei: He's very direct: neither the government nor the doctors are liable – that's the word which means legally responsible - if something bad happens to you.

　　Rob: And that's why if you are infected with the virus you have to sign a waiver.

　　Feifei: A waiver. This is a formal document in which the person says they've given up a right or claim – in this case, the right to take others to court.

　　Rob: Yes. That's right.

　　Feifei: So - people who are infected with Ebola can talk to a doctor, sign this document, this waiver, and get the medicine…

　　Rob: Well, not exactly – because not everyone gets it.

　　Feifei: And why is that?

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　　Rob: It's still experimental – and not much of it has been produced so there might not be enough for all who need it. So do you give it to the sickest who are likely to die, or to those not so sick who might recover with the help of the drug? It's a big dilemma⁸. A dilemma is a situation in which a choice has to be made between different things and one is not much better than the other.

　　Feifei: Quite a dilemma, indeed.

　　Rob: Now, let's get back to our quiz. I asked when the Ebola virus was discovered. Was it in 1966, 1976 or 1986?

　　Feifei: And I said 1976.

　　Rob: You were indeed right. It was discovered in 1976. Interestingly we don't really know which animal carries the Ebola virus, although bats have long been suspected and this makes prevention and controlling Ebola quite difficult. Okay. Well, we're almost at the end of the programme so let's recall some of the words that we've used today.

　　Feifei: We heard:

　　experimental drug

　　mortality rate

　　side effects

　　consent

　　waiver

　　liable

　　dilemma

　　Rob: Thanks Feifei. Well that's it for this programme. Please join us again soon for 6 Minute English from BBC Learning English.

　　Both: Bye.

1 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

2 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

3 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

4 confidentiality   

n.秘而不宣，保密

参考例句：

• They signed a confidentiality agreement. 他们签署了一份保守机密的协议。
• Cryptography is the foundation of supporting authentication, integrality and confidentiality. 而密码学是支持认证、完整性和机密性机制的基础。

5 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

6 sue   

vt.控告，起诉；vi.请求，追求，起诉

参考例句：

• If you don't pay me the money,I'll sue you.如果你不付给我钱，我就告你。
• The war criminals sue for peace.战犯求和。

7 liable   

adj.有...倾向的，有法律责任的

参考例句：

• We are all liable to make mistakes when we're tired.我们疲劳的时候都容易出错。
• He is liable for the fault of his son.他应该为他儿子的过失负责。

8 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。