In: Nursing
Given the impact of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) I and II and now COVID-19, how do public health professionals rate the current surveillance efforts?
Is the post-SARS improvements that were made were enough?
Surveillance efforts and COVID 19
The first report on SARS infection ( Severe Acute Respiratory syndrome was in Southern China in 2002. SARS is a form of pneumonia due to infection by a Corona virus , charecterised by fever , lethargy, coughing and myalgia. The infection may be fatal in certain individuals as it can affect the lungs severely. After the first incidence of SARS , within one year it spread to 26 countries with more than 8000 cases. After the first Epidemics , the infection reappeared four times . North American countries also affected by the infection with ' SARS - CoV ' .
Surveillance refers the continous monitoring of disease occurance or the close observation of an individual or group. Many Surveillance measures adopted during the SARS epidemics including travel restrictions to the affected areas and infection control measures. State Governments has taken certain actions to prevent the spread and CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) recommended the infected people to stay in isolation in home or hospital to prevent the spread of infection to healthy people. From 2004 , there was no known cases of SARS infection .
COVID 19 or Novel Corona virus infection appeared as the reappearance of SARS as SARS ii and the virus responsible for is SARS - CoV2 . COVID 19 is a highly contagious disease that spreads through respiratory droplets . Currently the infection affected around 44 million people and 1.18 million deaths occured due to the fatal infection. Initial steps of surveillance of COVID 19 was not satisfactory, in most countries including the United States. But the Federal and state Governments initiated the strategies and CDC implemented the surveillance activities to monitor the disease occurance. Even though public health professionals will not be ready to rate the surveillance activities with full marks , they may rate it satisfactory as the travel restrictions , quarantines are implemented properly in the country. Treatment facilities for the low income families and the supply of PPE ( Personal Protective Equipment) to the Health care professionals were not upto the standard during the pandemic time of COVID 19, that still continue to cost many lives.
Post SARS improvements among the countries that affected with the SARS were not enough. Even the famous hospitals and Healthcare settings were empty of PPE kits or the available were very few. The health centers were not ready for a disaster like COVID 19 pandemic. So the infection could cost many lives ; in US itself around 229K deaths and around 9 million cases occured as of today's reports.