Reportable Diseases in Indiana - Essay Example

"Reportable Diseases in Indiana" is a worthy example of a paper on social and family issues.
The following is a list of reputable diseases in the state of Indiana (Indiana Government, 2015).

1. Anthrax
2. Botulism
3. Cholera
4. Diphtheria
5. Human babesiosis
6. Haemophilus influenza
7. Hepatitis
8. Histoplasmosis
9. Meningococcal disease
10. Rabies

I think these reputable diseases initially came about because of migration, developments in the transport industry that allow people to quickly travel to other parts of the world and return, and the rapid evolution rates of microbes that cause these diseases. For instance, by the end of 2010, human babesiosis was first reportable in Indiana, which then became reportable nationally by early 2011 (Long et al., 2012). This is a clear indication of the significant role played by migration and fast traveling by disease carriers. This attribution to the spread of illnesses is key to making diseases reportable by Indiana’s disease and healthcare boards, and even the FDA.

A history of the statistics of an illness reveals why it is reportable in a given state. In Indiana, skin test appraisals for histoplasmosis were conducted in 2001 in widespread areas that exhibited high contact rates amongst long-term inhabitants. By 2002, more than 20 million households across the United States were exposed to histoplasmosis, of which 95% exhibited a minor flu-like sickness (Reiss et al, 2011). As a result, healthcare institutes report roughly 500,000 new cases of histoplasmosis yearly across the nation with 200,000 of them considered medically ill and 4,000 cases requiring hospital admittance. By 2007, Indiana considered histoplasmosis a reportable disease because of its widespread nature (Long et al., 2012). Reporting was insufficient in Indiana at this point possibly because Indiana law did not need continuation public health measures.

Another example of how fast disease-causing microbes evolve is Indiana’s experience with ophthalmia. Ophthalmia cases rose in Indiana between 1995 and 2005 amongst victims who reported very few incidents of traveling outside the state or country (Reiss et al, 2011). Medical researchers argued that the illness-causing microbes were evolving at an alarming rate and that making it a reportable disease was necessary to prevent additional cases of infection. Reportable illnesses are a substantial risk to Indiana’s financial, animal, and human health. Numerous illnesses, health disorders, and incidents are reportable by Indiana law. Nevertheless, some of these conditions are not reportable. As a result, Indiana law has a list of illnesses vectored by animals that residents must report to the Board of Animal Health immediately once suspected.

A disease I would add to Indiana’s list of reportable diseases is whooping cough (Pertussis). As of 2014, Indiana was dealing with a rise in whooping cough addresses (Indiana Government, 2015). Whooping cough is an infectious disease spread by diseased carriers exhibiting coughing and sneezing symptoms in close proximity with uninfected people. Infants and children are the most vulnerable to whooping cough and babysitters, parents, or family members usually, unknowingly infect them. There are vaccines accessible from childhood through adulthood to protect Indiana residents against whooping cough. As a result, Indiana recommends parents, relatives, and babysitters, or even elementary teachers to communicate with healthcare providers about the Tdap vaccine.