Epidemic And Pandemics

Assume that you are a quality officer who is responsible for one (1) of the state’s largest healthcare organizations. You have been told that the quality of patient care has decreased, and you have been assigned a project that is geared toward increasing quality of care for the patients. Your Chief Executive Officer has requested a six to eight page (6-8) summary of your recommended initiatives.

This paper focuses on describing the BSPH interdisciplinary and cross-cutting competencies that comprises the frameworks of public health, communication in public health practices, diversity and culture, and professionalism. The frameworks of public health practices focuses on the prevention of diseases and the health of the various communities. Public health officials seek to conduct research to enhance prevention. Officials also focus on investigating the public health problem that allows them to detect and control infectious diseases that may affect the health of a population. Investigating the problems may also aid in determining the magnitude, scope, and the characteristics of a public health threat. Planning, implementing, and

Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America is my chosen book to for the class. Following excerpts and reviews, the book challenges the darker side of medications and what they exactly do to patients. The number of mentally ill has been highest in the past two decades, and it not only plagues adults, but children as well. One would think that the advancements in medicine would prevent this statistic going up, but it has not. Robert Whitaker investigates into the matter and explains the dangers of the medications, such as anti-depressants.

I welcome all EIS posts and am flexible with regards to the topical area and the geographic location of the assignment. Throughout my career, I have been fortunate to have diverse work and volunteer experiences, both abroad and within the United States. These opportunities have given me a profound appreciation for the interdisciplinary nature of public health. During the course of my career and education, I have provided primary and urgent medical services for communities without insurance; traveled to Sweden to conduct qualitative research aimed at improving chronic cancer pain; developed community outreach materials

Infectious epidemics and pandemics have happened all through mankind's history. “They remain the prime cause of death worldwide and will not be conquered during our lifetimes.” The flu of 1918 was one of the deadliest epidemics in history. “It infected an estimated 500 million people worldwide–about one-third of the planet’s population at the time–and killed an estimated 20 million to 50 million victims. More than 25 percent of the U.S. population became sick, and some 675,000 Americans died during the pandemic.” No one knew how the virus spread, there were no antibiotics to fight it, and no flu shots to prevent it. In the final year of World War I, it struck terror in the hearts of people all across Europe and left more death in its wake than the combined military actions of the combatants. “It killed more Americans in a few months than World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the

The Black Death is one of the largest pandemics in human history. Beginning in 1347 and ending in 1351, these four years of horror raged on all over Europe. People were terrified, angry, depressed, and confused all at the same time. Europe was a horrible place to live during those four years.

The influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 impacted places throughout the world both negatively and positively. Often the reason for the major spread of pestilence was due to transportation of goods and people. This pandemic infected people worldwide, killing millions. Overall people responded to the pandemic in different ways through commitment to the task, consulting religion, avoiding contact with others, and the effort to raise public health awareness.

The Black Death, a horrible pandemic plague that spread through all of Europe, taking 25,000,000 people along with it. In 1347, a mysterious pandemic appeared in the city-states of Italy just as Europe was recovering from famine. The Epidemic did not end until 1351 partly due to the belief of the people that this plague was spread through the air and was gods way of punishing them for their sins. Although this plague killed many people, its effects led life to the way it is today. The three most important effects of the Black Death on Western Europe were the changing relationships between people and the church, the People beginning to express their faith and

My unwavering interest in infectious diseases began in middle school when I read the book, The Hot Zone, by Richard Preston that intricately describes the Ebola virus. While the description of how the virus destroys the human body are unpleasant, this virus fascinated me. Consequently, in my spare time I read about other infectious diseases, such as cholera and tuberculosis, on Wikipedia and other web pages for my personal enjoyment. Years later, I participated in Princeton Model Congress in high school where I first learned about public health. Participants made mock congressional bills to be passed in a congress comprised of high school and college students in order to implement a national change. My mock bill advocated for the incorporation of HIV tests within annual physicals. The purpose of this bill was to ensure that more people became knowledgeable about their status and with this knowledge, HIV positive individuals can receive care faster and take proactive measures to prevent infecting others with this virus. As I researched various facts about the HIV epidemic and how HIV impacts communities in Washington, D.C., my interest in public health evolved even though I did not know of the official name, public health. At the time, I wanted to be a lawyer and averted from anything science or math related. Yet, I cared about my community and I wanted to make a difference. I rediscovered my interest in public health in college as a biology major.

The United states faced one of the deadliest epidemics in US history from 1918-1919, killing nearly 675,000 americans. When it first started, it killed nearly half the US soldiers who fought in the war. By August of 1918, Philadelphia and Boston were already infected by influenza. Then by October 1919, influenza had killed nearly 200,000 americans.

The aftermath of this outbreak helped the world learn how to respond to deadly illnesses in an effective manor as well as moved the cause of science forward by striving to find a way to treat this disease. The event lead to the organizations responsible for controlling these outbreaks to grow and develop more proficient ways to battle the flu as well as many other sicknesses. Today, “international organizations such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) provide leadership in global health matters. The WHO’s preparedness plans against influenza pandemics include six levels of pandemic alert, which determine the recommended actions it should take in conjunction with the international community, governments, and industry.6” This expansion has saved millions of lives as now flu vaccines are usually available in most communities as well as treatments for nearly every ailment known. Without these organizations influence the Swine Flu epidemic could have been much more devastating along with the hundreds of other disease that could have wiped out entire populations without the intervention of these groups. The government was also changed by this as they had

One of the most virulent strains of influenza in history ravaged the world and decimated the populations around the world. Present during World War I, the 1918 strain of pandemic influenza found many opportunities to spread through the war. At the time, science wasn’t advanced enough to study the virus, much less find a cure; medical personnel were helpless when it came to fighting the disease, and so the flu went on to infect millions and kill at a rate 25 times higher than the standard.

Public Health is an interesting topic. Many people may not understand the purpose of Public health, it is a fairly new field although it has been around since the 1800’s. Before being introduced to the the field, I was clueless and never knew such a subject existed. Going into college with dubious decisions on my major within the pre-med program I knew I wanted to help people and the society, but was unsure what to major in.

I was drawn to the idea of not only focusing on one-on-one patient care that doctors provide, but also solving problems that affect the health of entire populations. The study of disease and health within populations; for instance, preventing disease, promoting health, and reducing health problems between groups are the main reasons I want to pursue an M.P.H focusing on epidemiology. These are my strongest interests because I believe they are important in improving our world’s health.

The world has experienced a total of four pandemics within the twentieth century. These pandemics, as horrific and deadly as they are, have brought so much more positive advances to our health care system and how we prepare for biological threats. Although we are in the twenty-first century and we have advanced so far in healthcare, there is still the possibility of a deadly pandemic.