Asian Avian Virus Essays

Asian Avian Virus Essays Asian Avian Virus Paper Asian Avian Virus Paper Avian (bird) Influenza (flu) is a virus or infection that originated from birds, hence the word avian. This is a type of disease that is natural among poultry like ducks and chickens since they have the virus living in their intestinal organs. Avian influenza is a disease that is highly contagious and fatal among birds. The virus runs in the birds saliva and in their feces. Domesticated birds get infected when they get in contact with surfaces contaminated by the sick birds or when they get in contact with a sick one. This disease among the fowls has may kinds. There are approximately 16 types that have been classified, and the most fatal one is called highly pathogenic avian influenza (Bupa, 2005). This virus normally happens in the species of birds, and until the late 90s they never believed that it can affect humans who maintain a close proximity with these birds. There have been several reported occurrences of human infection since the late 90s. The process of this bird disease being transferred to humans has been dubbed as species jumping. The reason why avian influenza can infect people is because of the possibility that the avian flu virus has combined with the human influenza thereby creating a new specie of virus that is easily transferable and fatal (Bupa, 2005). Is it a responsible behavior on the part of scientists to rouse fears in the public before the situation progresses? Explain your viewpoint. The role of scientists and doctors alike is to give facts and informations based on their scientific and medical findings. There have been violent reactions claiming that these scientists have instilled fear and panic amongst the public with regard to the avian flu disease. I do not think that it was their intention to cause panic and turmoil among the people. They have an ethical and medical obligation to disclose whatever detail they can find and give the information out to the public as a precautionary measure. The reaction of the people upon receiving the news is beyond their control. It is my opinion that they are just simply doing their job in laying out the minutest detail even before the situation progressed because had they not divulged what they know, they will be sooner or later blamed by the public for withholding such valuable information concerning the public health and the general welfare. Whether they reveal information or not, they will still receive criticism from the public. Thus, I think that telling the public every detail about their findings would be a better choice rather than concealing information that the people should know- only to find out later that many people have been infected with a disease that they should have avoided had they been informed how to do so earlier. Advantages of Early Warning Early warnings about a possible outbreak of a disease of any kind or about calamities in general create a handful of advantages. For one, warnings enable the public to be well-informed of what is happening around so that they can decide what to do about it. Having   knowledge beforehand of an upcoming epidemic may give people an upper hand when it comes to preparing for safety and making precautionary steps to protect their family. The old saying that prevention is better than cure never goes out of style and it can be best applied in this scenario. If people have been forewarned, then they can avoid getting that kind of sickness in the first place. Disadvantages of Early Warning The most common disadvantage of early warnings is the over-speculation that it may cause the public. Some people have a tendency to overreact and be anxious. They start to paint pictures in their head that are too far-fetched from the early warning that has been delivered to them. The situation that is most dreaded by many is the panic and fear that people may feel upon receiving the news. Panic is very contagious and it would cause a great deal of inconvenience to many if However, while these warnings produce so much tension on others, it may also cause disbelief in some. It is the belief of others that the scientists are making the public worried and confused over nothing, and since they can make warnings, they probably have the solution for these occurrences; they just do not want reveal that yet. It is true indeed that the human mind can never be over or underestimated in all instances when it comes to all kinds of reasoning. References Bupa. (2005, October 18). Hot Topic- Avian Flu (Bird Flu). Retrieved August 3, 2009, from bupa.co.uk/health_information/html/health_news /270104avianflu.html.