A story about Hantavirus on KOB TV in Albuquerque, NM, the evening of April 24, 2013, featured researcher Marjorie McConnell from the Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) Network Office explaining how survivors of the disease are using Facebook to connect with each other and to share their stories of survival. McConnell, the Director of Core Services at the Network Office, who holds a PhD in Medical Sociology from the University of New Mexico, last year organized a “reunion” for all the survivors to finally meet face to face after only communicating online.
For more information on the discovery of Hantavirus, read the National Science Foundation article, Environment - An Ecological Solution to a Medical Mystery or Weathering Hantavirus: Ecological Monitoring Provides Predictive Model from The Scientist.