In a swift reaction to calls made by some Americans for the cutting off of the West African region from the rest of the world especially US, President Barack Obama has warned that sealing off the region would only worsen the situation.

Obama gave the warning in his weekly address to the nation on Saturday.

“Trying to seal off an entire region of the world could actually make the situation worse. it would make it hard to move health workers and supplies back and forth. Experience shows that it could also cause people in the affected region to change their travel, to evade screening, and make the disease even harder to track,” Obama said.

The US president also encouraged Americans not “to give in to hysteria and fear” over the spread of the deadly virus. He therefore called for patience and a sense of perspective.

“All of us-citizens, leaders, the media-have a responsibility and a role to play. This is a serious disease but we can’t give in to hysteria or fear because that only makes it harder to get people the accurate information they need,” he said.