Question

CASE92

Dirty Employees or Bioterrorism?

Sharon B. Buchbinder

“In a nearly unbelievable chapter of Oregon history, a guru from India gathered 2,000 followers to live on a remote eastern Oregon ranch. The dream collapsed 25 years ago amid attempted murders, criminal charges and deportations” (Zaitz, 2011a). The following case is based on true events. In 1981, in The Dalles (pronounced The Dowells), Oregon, a religious cult called the Rajneeshees tried to register 3,500 homeless street people so they could take over the county government and become one with The Dalles, a merger of church and state. The Rajneeshees were politically savvy and well organized. The Dalles had 14,000 non-cult voters, but the county clerk recognized the threat of the cult and stopped the registration of these Rajneeshees’ “adoptees.” The clerk then forced each person to come to hearings to determine voting eligibility. At around the same time as the political upheavals, 751 people fell ill with nausea, diarrhea, headache, and fever, overwhelming the local hospital’s ED. Local doctors quickly identified the causative organism as Salmonella typhimurium. Using standard epidemiological methods, the public health department was able to trace every case of Salmonella to salad bars at area restaurants. One in particular was hard hit, the Shakey’s Pizza. The owner was devastated with loss of sales and liability claims when over 400 customers became ill. Was it “dirty employees” who did this to him and his business? Health officials closed his restaurant, leaving his life in a shambles. The food-borne illnesses seemed to stop with the arrival of an army of public health inspectors who maintained vigilance over the food supply. A year later, during an FBI probe into the Rajneeshees for wiretapping and fraud, an informant suggested that the cult was responsible for this food-borne outbreak.

• Background Statement

• Major Problems and Secondary Issues

• Your Role

• Organizational Strengths and Weakness

• Alternatives and Recommended Solutions

• Evaluation

Answer 1