Module 7

         A pandemic is defined as pertaining to a disease that has effected either an entire country or the world. While COVID-19 has been stated to have originated in China, cases all around the world and the rapid spread has impacted countries such as Italy and the United States of America. Cases have increased by the thousands, along with deaths we well. Over 3.42 million cases have been traced around the world, with the United States alone suffering from 1.15 million of those, not even considering cases where people can be unaware that they have it or the cases not reported. 
        Even if this disease were to only have impacted China alone, it would still be considered a pandemic when it becomes a concerning issue of an entire country. Yet, with no one originally taking the announcements of the disease serious, and people still being reckless with shelter-in-place orders, cases will only increase over time. 
       The world has suffered a great deal of fear due to not having complete knowledge of diseases and how they are contracted, along uncertainty of medical professionals and news reporters often giving many different numbers and cases and severity once diagnosed.
        Pandemics such as the period of HIV/AIDS sent many people in a flurry as well. When HIV/AIDS began to surface in the 1980s, people classified it as a “homosexual or black disease” and treated them as if they were people with leprosy and wanted nothing to do them. Because it was mostly prevalent in those two communities, many members of the black and LGBTQ community were discriminated against. They were isolated in wards in hospitals and were left to die because even the nurses and doctors did not want to be in the same vicinity as them because they feared that they would catch it and die. People who died from this were even buried separately in ditches because people feared that other dead bodies in graveyards would be infected. According to MPH Online “As awareness has grown, new treatments have been developed that make HIV far more manageable, and many of those infected go on to lead productive lives. Between 2005 and 2012 the annual global deaths from HIV/AIDS dropped from 2.2 million to 1.6 million.”
     The personal impact of this pandemic has left me with a great deal of frustration. Personally, I feel that no one has the answers on what to do about coronavirus, no doctors, no news anchors, no scientists. One minute, they tell us that we need to be extremely concerned and be in fear with things such as shelter-in-place and closing down places of leisure. Then they tell us that everything will be fine if we just wash our hands and stay home. In addition to the uncertainty, I am frustrated that there are people in the world who still aren’t taking  COVID-19 seriously and still are finding time to gather with their friends or families and thinks it’s okay to do things such as have birthday parties and baby showers and things of a gathering nature because they’re in the house. I’m frustrated with people who think that they are untouchable and still not wearing masks or gloves or doing anything to protect themselves and others. Most importantly there isn’t much being done for the people who can’t take care of themselves during these times, such as the homeless, and people whose home lives are volatile or unstable. People have lost their jobs and some can’t even afford to feed their children. There are people who still feel the need to bring their entire families grocery shopping when we can easily slow the curve by only sending a few people out. I feel like people should not be this careless when no one is 100% certain on such a trying topic.

Work Cited:

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

https://www.mphonline.org/worst-pandemics-in-history/

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/basics/past-pandemics.html

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