The Pan American Health Organization have put out a few recommendations to combat the Zika outbreak. The organization suggests reducing and eliminating any mosquito breeding site on your property. Related to this, people should close off their homes to mosquitos. Such methods include using window screens rather than an open window with no screen. Also, the PAHO recommends sleeping under a mosquito net to prevent bites while you are asleep. Visitors to areas with a Zika outbreak should wear insect repellent as well as cover their skin as much as possible with large clothes to limit exposed skin that could be bit by a mosquito. The final suggestion is pregnant women should avoid mosquito bites.
Brazil
Brazil has had experience combatting mosquitos. In 1947, there was a yellow fever outbreak. After 11 years of mosquito killing operations, the entire species was eradicated from Brazil. Times were different back then. There was a much smaller population in Brazil. Also, DDT was legal to use until 1997. Today, the plans to eradicate the aedes aegypti involve education and action. 220,000 military personel along with 300,000 health workers and volunteers are going door to door to target this mosquito in order to fight off the Zika virus. This vast army of people are providing education on the situation. Education includes warnings about travel, becoming pregnant and the fight against the mosquito since there is currently no vaccine. This group is also scanning homes for mosquito breeding sites and destroying the sites. A genetically modified mosquito will help lead the fight against Zika. “Wolbachia” is a specific kind of bacterium that has produced great outcomes when found in a mosquito. Wolbachia is within the genetically modified mosquito. When these genetically modified mosquitos are introduced to the mosquito population and have offspring; the offspring will not receive the Zika virus. This is due to the fact that Wolbachia prevents the transmission of many diseases (including Zika) from the parent to the offspring. Brazil is very open to working with other nations to stop this outbreak. Brazil believes teamwork with Latin America countries, Caribbean countries, as well as the US will be essential to creating a vaccine. There will be many partnerships and funding with a goal of creating a vaccine. Brazil highlights the benefits of investing in technology and research to fight off the aedes aegypti. For example, the genetically modified mosquito, a technological advancement, has shown great results. There are some drawbacks to Brazil’s engagement in fighting the Zika outbreak. One example is the public citizens have no privacy anymore because government officials are going door to door to inspect their houses. The government officials can force entry into the residence or call the police to help gain entry if necessary. There is also fear among the public that some of these agents going door to door may be imposters posing as government agents with the intent to steal from people’s homes. Another fear among the public is when they first encounter the genetically modified mosquitos. The public is not used to seeing pink, blue, and yellow mosquitos and this looks a bit odd for the first encounter. Since the genetically modified mosquitos are preventing offspring from developing, this is detrimental to mosquito populations. The plan is to destroy this specific mosquito population. …show more content…
People in full body suits and wearing masks carried out fumigation throughout many neighborhoods. The problem with this is: the people doing the fumigating are wearing these big suits to protect them from the harmful chemicals they are spraying; these chemicals are being put into the environment for the public to breathe and the public are not going around wearing this big suits. This is a health ethics concern. Another issue for fumigators is the public is not welcoming them into their homes. The fumigators are supposed to go door to door to provide help and discover any mosquito breeding sites. In certain parts of El Salvador, there are communities controlled by gang warfare. Many members of the public fear that these health workers could possibly be spies for competing gangs. Also, not many people are too welcoming of strangers into their house to spray toxic chemicals
Brazil
Brazil has had experience combatting mosquitos. In 1947, there was a yellow fever outbreak. After 11 years of mosquito killing operations, the entire species was eradicated from Brazil. Times were different back then. There was a much smaller population in Brazil. Also, DDT was legal to use until 1997. Today, the plans to eradicate the aedes aegypti involve education and action. 220,000 military personel along with 300,000 health workers and volunteers are going door to door to target this mosquito in order to fight off the Zika virus. This vast army of people are providing education on the situation. Education includes warnings about travel, becoming pregnant and the fight against the mosquito since there is currently no vaccine. This group is also scanning homes for mosquito breeding sites and destroying the sites. A genetically modified mosquito will help lead the fight against Zika. “Wolbachia” is a specific kind of bacterium that has produced great outcomes when found in a mosquito. Wolbachia is within the genetically modified mosquito. When these genetically modified mosquitos are introduced to the mosquito population and have offspring; the offspring will not receive the Zika virus. This is due to the fact that Wolbachia prevents the transmission of many diseases (including Zika) from the parent to the offspring. Brazil is very open to working with other nations to stop this outbreak. Brazil believes teamwork with Latin America countries, Caribbean countries, as well as the US will be essential to creating a vaccine. There will be many partnerships and funding with a goal of creating a vaccine. Brazil highlights the benefits of investing in technology and research to fight off the aedes aegypti. For example, the genetically modified mosquito, a technological advancement, has shown great results. There are some drawbacks to Brazil’s engagement in fighting the Zika outbreak. One example is the public citizens have no privacy anymore because government officials are going door to door to inspect their houses. The government officials can force entry into the residence or call the police to help gain entry if necessary. There is also fear among the public that some of these agents going door to door may be imposters posing as government agents with the intent to steal from people’s homes. Another fear among the public is when they first encounter the genetically modified mosquitos. The public is not used to seeing pink, blue, and yellow mosquitos and this looks a bit odd for the first encounter. Since the genetically modified mosquitos are preventing offspring from developing, this is detrimental to mosquito populations. The plan is to destroy this specific mosquito population. …show more content…
People in full body suits and wearing masks carried out fumigation throughout many neighborhoods. The problem with this is: the people doing the fumigating are wearing these big suits to protect them from the harmful chemicals they are spraying; these chemicals are being put into the environment for the public to breathe and the public are not going around wearing this big suits. This is a health ethics concern. Another issue for fumigators is the public is not welcoming them into their homes. The fumigators are supposed to go door to door to provide help and discover any mosquito breeding sites. In certain parts of El Salvador, there are communities controlled by gang warfare. Many members of the public fear that these health workers could possibly be spies for competing gangs. Also, not many people are too welcoming of strangers into their house to spray toxic chemicals