Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Infectious Diseases and Microbiology 2328-4064 2 6A 2014 12 24 Exposing the Origins of the Ebola Outbreak: Urging for a Shift in Response from Reactive to Proactive 1 18 EN Arooj Akhtar Eyerusalem Befkadu Paramita Basu Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Touro College of Pharmacy, New York, USA Priyank Kumar Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences, Touro College of Pharmacy, New York, USA AJIDM201426A1 10.12691/ajidm-2-6A-1 2014 11 12 2014 12 12 2014 12 24 On August 8, 2014, the World Health Organization established that the current Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), urging the global community to orchestrate their efforts to control the outbreak. As of November 12, 2014 the World Health Organization reported that at least 5,160 lives have been lost to the virus. We conducted a literature review in order to determine the underlying factors contributing to the emergence, rapid spread, and uncontrolled nature of the current virus outbreak, the first to display a distinct epicenter in West Africa. The global community's reaction to Ebola has been marked by fear. Fear of both the unknown nature of the virus, and knowing that we have made limited efforts in strengthening our arsenal of Ebola fighting treatment options. We explore novel treatment and precautionary approaches in an attempt to shift the response from reactive to proactive in our efforts to battle Ebola.