HealthyPeople.gov states one of the 2020 global objectives is to, “Improve public health and strengthen U.S. national security through global disease detection, response, prevention, and control strategies” (GlobalHealth). This objective highlights an awareness exist in the necessity to monitor global health in relation to American welfare. Therefore understanding what the stakes are concerning the possibility of an epidemic and how said epidemic is handled on a national level is extremely important. While America has dealt with a large variety of health care crisis effectively in the past, handling a health crisis in the most responsible manner requires multiple actions and an Ebola outbreak would test the country to the limits of its abilities. Another area of concern is the state of the health care system on a large scale, dealing with the large number of outbreaks that take place during a health crisis requires a plan to be in place. At the current time America has some protocols in place concerning a health crisis, notwithstanding the country does not currently have the resources or a strong enough contingency plan to deal with a large scale outbreak. Additionally, with the inclusion of social media as a method of receiving information creating hysteria is not a difficult task. Therefore the best effort to rectify the situation and reinstate the level of health the country was previous to an outbreak of any magnitude would definitely require the input of the government and possibly the military. As a healthcare professional one’s goal would always be preventative care. Therefore a medical professional would try to stay ahead of anything before it became an epidemic (Cases of Ebola in the United States). However with diseases such as Ebola, one can only practice preventative measures but for so long. The reality is the rate of speed the virus could travel, especially with the various methods of available transportation is enough to level a nation. Therefore one’s best role as a medical professional in the case of an epidemic would be to stay active in testing and treating as many people as necessary. The task of dealing with an epidemic especially when death is a common outcome of the disease is an enormous task for a country to manage. Public health issues starting at the core level, which is dealing with the actual data of the scenario in itself is a lot to handle. However the actual treatment requires staff, space, and supplies which range from medical supplies such as needles and lab equipment, to the most evident which is medicine. In addition, teaching one’s support system or performing community outreach to help prevent further growth of the epidemic is all part of the various tasks necessary when dealing with public health. A protocol is in place when an infectious disease outbreak takes place in america. Part of the protocol is effective communication on a global level; without said communication, preparation for the unknown is the most difficult type of preparation. For example, planning for a natural disaster follows a similar guideline regardless of the disaster, reinforcing the home and gathering non-perishables are examples of go to preventative measures. The only difference is the amount of whatever one
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The level of resources, technology, and amazing minds in the American scientific and medical community would easily surpass that of many other places. However everything that comes with a crisis of such a magnitude is even more than America can handle. Although the country is working on a number of measures to protect the landscape of health the road is still long. The inclusion of fear and internet chatter also increases the difficulty which affects a country during such a time. The country would need the power of all areas of public health including the government, the military, and all medical professionals on hand to even begin to put a dent in such a health crisis. One can only hope that any use of the military will be well thought out and part of a unified plan. Unlike “Joe McCormick, the C.D.C. official who had clashed with the Army over the management of the Ebola Reston outbreak”(228). Ultimately the country would rebound but the fact that an epidemic can even take place is a sign the country is not truly
The level of resources, technology, and amazing minds in the American scientific and medical community would easily surpass that of many other places. However everything that comes with a crisis of such a magnitude is even more than America can handle. Although the country is working on a number of measures to protect the landscape of health the road is still long. The inclusion of fear and internet chatter also increases the difficulty which affects a country during such a time. The country would need the power of all areas of public health including the government, the military, and all medical professionals on hand to even begin to put a dent in such a health crisis. One can only hope that any use of the military will be well thought out and part of a unified plan. Unlike “Joe McCormick, the C.D.C. official who had clashed with the Army over the management of the Ebola Reston outbreak”(228). Ultimately the country would rebound but the fact that an epidemic can even take place is a sign the country is not truly