Preparing for an Emergency

Being prepared is important. News coverage on Sept.11.2001, and more recently, On Hurricane Katrina has proven how difficult it is to predict the future. Recently we have been hearing the word "Pandemic" as something for which we should be prepared for. Now let me define pandemic for those who do not know the word or its meaning.

A pandemic is a global outbreak of disease that occurs when a new virus appears or "emerges" in the human population, causes serious illness, and then spreads easily from person to person worldwide. Pandemics are different from seasonal outbreaks or "epidemics" of influenza. Seasonal outbreaks are caused by subtypes of influenza viruses that already circulate among people, whereas pandemic outbreaks are caused by new subtypes, by subtypes that have never circulated among people, or by subtypes that have not circulated among people for a long time.

Influenza usually comes on suddenly, starting with a sore throat, fever, headache and profound fatigue, followed by dry cough, body aches, and possibly nausea/vomiting. There are three main types of influenza viruses: A, B, C. Influenza pandemic is most likely when the Influenza Type A virus makes a dramatic change (antigenic shift). This shift results in a new or Novel "virus" to which the general population has no immunity. The appearance of the Novel virus is the first step toward a pandemic. We all know we can't control the spread of a pandemic we can prepare for an emergency by starting with the basics. Now that doesn't mean go out and buy up as many caned goods and such like items.

But it does mean we can be prepared with just a basic fact sheet. It is also important to think about health issues that could arise if an influenza pandemic occurs, and how it could affect you and your loved ones. Preparing for an emergency should by a high priority in every body's life. We only live once. Use a checklist as a guide to prepare for any disaster, create communication plans and put the checklist where everyone in your household can see it. When in public places always think ahead, make sure you are familiar with all exits and stairways and the most important is to stay informed, because what you don't know might kill you.

Aids are also a pandemic. The best way to be safe is if you decide to have open relations with multiple partners then it is wise to wrap it up. Wrap it up means wearing a condom. Condoms are not 100% safe but it does protect from most diseases. The more the public is informed the more information a parent, friend or family member can pass on to the younger kids and maybe it will save their lives. Countries like Africa have a serious disease problem that is literally destroying human life at a fast rate. Annual outbreaks of Aids are due to minor changes in the surface proteins of the viruses that enable the viruses to evade the immunity humans have developed after previous infections with the viruses or in response to vaccinations. Preparing for the next influenza or Aids pandemic will provide benefits now, as improvements in infrastructure can have immediate and lasting benefits, and can also mitigate the effect of other epidemics or infectious disease threats. So the better we are prepared the safer we will become. Thanks for reading and stay posted for me. Ask yourself, are you prepared?