Question

Initial Post Instructions
Time to put on your epidemiology hat! Investigate and describe one disease outbreak (epidemic, endemic, sporadic, pandemic, etc.) in the last 200 years. Explain why the outbreak was classified as such. As an epidemiologist, how would you prevent this type of outbreak in the future?

Answer 1

The Hong Kong of 1968, a pandemic of influenza originated in China in July 1968 and lasted until 1969-1970. The flu resulted in nearly 4 million deaths. The influenza A subtype H3N2 virus, also called the Hong Kong flu virus caused the flu.

Symptoms lasted four to five days, and in some cases up to two weeks. The infection caused upper respiratory symptoms typical of influenza, including chills, fever, muscle pain and weakness.

The ultimate goal for public health and food safety officials is not just stopping foodborne disease outbreaks once they occur, but preventing them from happening in the first place. Long-term prevention of foodborne outbreaks takes the actions of many partners in the food production chain, stretching from farm to table. Here are examples of some prevention measures at each level:

• Producing and harvesting food
  • Quality assurance programs at egg farms
  • Safe agricultural practices for produce farmers
  • Efforts to keep shellfish harvest beds free of sewage contamination
• Processing foods
  • Inspection systems at meat processing plants
  • Use of pasteurization, canning, cooking, irradiation, and other steps to kill pathogens in food processing
• Distributing and preparing foods
  • Buyer specifications for food safety in food purchasing contracts
  • Training for restaurant managers and food workers about food safety and sanitation measures
  • Proper hand-washing procedures and facilities
  • Encouraging food workers not to work when they are ill, for example by providing paid sick leave
  • Food safety education for consumers