I attended Dr. Redd’s lecture in RITA the other night. It was an informative lecture on emergency preparedness and about Dr. Redd’s line of work at the Center for Disease Control (CDC). This event was put on by the department of Health and Human Performance. He started with the driving causes of outbreaks and the need to be prepared for outbreaks at anytime. These include population growth, international border crossings, animals being raised for food, and social media/communication and how it can quickly create panic though false claims/news. A lot of this is related to the environment and how it has a large impact on health and epidemics/pandemics. Population growth has a big impact on the environment as there are only so many natural resources and there will not be enough for everyone at one point in time. 

Another big driving factor that is causes emergencies is animals being raised for food, as it is creating environmental problems on top of spreading food borne illnesses which is a major concern of the CDC’s. Wiping out forest for land to raise animals for food is not feasible longterm and it is not a way to grow healthy foods. The commercial use of land to raise animals has detrimental effects on the earth. As we’ve been learning in class, the amazon rainforest, among other forest, is being destroyed. This causes problems with sustainability, food security and global warming. Many diseases are spread from animals to humans. With animals being raised in mass quantities there is more of a chance that diseases will be spread.

After speaking on the driving causes for emergency preparedness Dr. Redd went into some case studies. As a public health major and an aspiring epidemiologist I found all of this very fascinating. It is my dream job to work for the CDC. Dr. Redd showed a case study on Ebola and how its vector (way of transmission) is most likely bats. Ebola has been around for a long time and was officially identified in 1976. Ebola is suspected to be transmitted by bats at first and then it is spread through contact. Right now there is an epidemic in Africa. This epidemic is affecting many people in different ways. There are vaccines now that help protect against Ebola but they do not give you complete immunity. The environments being disrupted by changes in temperature, habitat, etc. all have an effect on these outbreaks. Malaria is on the rise again due to increased temperatures in Africa. Mosquitos thrive on warm and wet temperatures, which leads to an increase in incidence of malaria. The environment has such an effect on our health that I did not realize before taking this class or attending this event. 

In conclusion, this event was eye opening for me as I want to work for the CDC and be an epidemiologist after I’m done with school. The work that is done at the CDC is so important for all of the world, not just the United States. The CDC does so much amazing work, globally and in the United States. It is important to be educated on these problems now and be able to raise awareness so we are prepared for any disaster.