SARS 2003
In 2003, a dangerous respiratory infection with a very high mortality rate – every tenth infected person died. The new virus spread across China and beyond its borders (Branswell, 2013). Nonetheless, the disease was eliminated after eight months since it was first detected. The Chinese government has taken strict measures to contain the infection, and as soon as it appeared, scientists eliminated the root cause of the virus. The SARS outbreak has dramatically impacted all systems of society – China has managed to strengthen its national and local surveillance approaches for virus control and prevention.
In addition, the pandemic caused significant economic losses. Almost every industry in Asia has been directly or indirectly affected by SARS (Branswell, 2013). Like the majority of similar respiratory diseases, SARS highlighted the vitality of considerable investments in the public health sector (Branswell, 2013). Besides, the outbreak of respiratory conditions has placed a massive burden on international health programs aimed at fighting against other infectious diseases, including malaria, tuberculosis, and others. Not to mention the impact of a pandemic on the population: people suffered from the losses of their family members, and their emotional state was unstable. Therefore, SARA has become the cause of significant changes in Chinese society.
Foot-and-Mouth Outbreak 2001
The foot-and-mouth disease epidemic started in February 2001 in the United Kingdom when sick pigs were found in the slaughterhouse. Mainly, the infection spread in sheep herds across England and Wales months before the start of the outbreak (PBS NewsHour, 2011). There were more than two thousand cases registered on farms in the majority of the rural areas of the United Kingdom. The disease has significantly impacted society, causing a crisis in the agriculture and tourism niches of Britain. More than six million cattle were killed in order to halt the further spread of the infection. These actions were the primary cause of economic losses since the state could not provide retailers with animal products.
Furthermore, the population’s mental health has dramatically suffered since children, and young adults have seen the scenes of violence in some cases and participated in them, which caused mental health negative changes. There was a major loss of control by agricultural activities and related industries due to rapid changes, new limitations, and regulations (PBS NewsHour, 2011). The new livestock only became resilient in up to six months, which led to increased awareness on farms (PBS NewsHour, 2011). Farmers were concerned about the re-emergence of foot-and-mouth disease or others such as tuberculosis.
Plague in Madagascar 2017
Madagascar experienced a severe plague outbreak in 2017, which impacted over two thousand of the island’s residents. The pandemic was halted by some public health intervention efforts that resulted in success in November 2017 (Outbreak of plague, 2017). Nevertheless, the plague is endemic in Madagascar and creates a significant threat to the population annually. In 2017, the plague outbreak impacted 37 districts of the republic and devastated the large cities with a high population density (Outbreak of plague, 2017). This resulted in the enhanced risk of infection transmission and high caused rapid spread of the disease.
The pandemic has had a devastating impact on the island’s infrastructure, social services, and economic operations. This, in turn, exposed the population of the region to climate change implications and environmental degradation. What is more, the poverty level has increased due to insufficient work from social and economic forces. Consequently, people had to not only recover from health problems but also restore the island’s economy.
References
Branswell, H. (2013). Ten years later, SARS still haunts survivors and health-care workers. The globe and mail. Web.
Outbreak of plague in Madagascar, 2017. (2017). European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. Web.
PBS NewsHour. (2011). Disease damage: A 2001 report on foot and mouth disease in Britain [Video]. YouTube. Web.