Uncommon Common Sense (Once Again)

With the seemingly uncontrollable outbreak of the ebola virus in Africa, the media in the United States has been focused on the story.  One outcome from the presence of the disease has been an emphasis on sanitation procedures and training in U.S. hospitals.

I recently had the occasion to visit someone in the hospital and discovered prominent placards in the entry

and in the elevators informing visitors of the symptoms of ebola and advising them to seek medical help if they displayed the symptoms and had been out of the country in the last few weeks.

The only problem:  the placards were in English and Spanish.  That's ok as far as it goes.  But in Guinea, one of the countries in the epicenter of the outbreak, and in Cote D'Ivoire nearby, the predominant language is French.  Common sense says: check out the basics on how best to communicate with your target audience.