Between the Extraordinary and the Everyday: Embodied Memory and Epidemic Preparedness During Ebola Outbreaks in Guinea
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: In 2021, an outbreak of Orthoebolavirus occurred in Nzerekore (Guinea). Following the declaration, diagnostic and containment actions were triggered, framing the outbreak as an extraordinary event. Yet, outbreaks are embedded in the everyday of social life and generate embodied memories that shape interactions between local populations and outbreak response teams. We examined locally the tension between the community's everyday and the exceptional in the outbreak response. We argue that the bodily imprint of such extraordinary events plays a critical role in shaping preparedness, yet it remains unseen by the global health technocracy.
Source: Medical Anthropology
Authors: Almudena Mari-Saez, Frédéric Le Marcis
Institutions: Inserm, Université de Montpellier, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Recherches Translationnelles sur le VIH et les Maladies Infectieuses, École Normale Supérieure de Lyon, Institut supérieur d'étude des religions et de la laïcité, Triangle : Action, Discours, Pensée politique et économique
Language: English
Subfield: Infectious Diseases
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Funder: UNICEF
OpenAlex ID: W7155029947