C228 Task 2

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Community Health and Population-Focused Nursing (C228) – Task #2 TUBERCULOSIS Stephanie Sanderson Western Governors University Mentor: Mikki Naught October 12, 2014 Tuberculosis Tuberculosis (or, “TB”) has existed throughout history. Mycobacterium tuberculosis (or, M. tuberculosis) is the causative bacterium in most cases of TB. M. tuberculosis was first described by Robert Koch in March of 1882. Presently, it is one of the world’s deadliest diseases (www.cdc.gov). In 2013, more than 9500 cases of TB were reported in the United States alone; during the previous year, there were about 1.3 million TB-related deaths, worldwide. M. tuberculosis is a highly aerobic pathogen, requiring high levels of oxygen. Fittingly, it infects the lungs…show more content…
One of the first steps to occur after notification of a TB outbreak is a consultation between the state’s health department, epidemiologist, and its public health laboratory & personnel. From there, varying factors are considered, and the decision is made to involve the CDC (or not). Here in the state of Washington, healthcare providers report actual OR suspected TB by calling (360)397-8182; in fact, it is mandatory for healthcare providers and laboratory personnel to report actual or suspected cases of TB to the health department. Additionally, it is required that healthcare providers, teachers, and child care licensees (and their employees) be screened for TB, and to maintain documentation of the screening (www.doh.wa.gov). Prevention…show more content…
A vaccine for TB does exist; it is called bacilli Calmetter-Guérin (or simply, “BCG”). Although BCG immunization provides optimal protection for infants and young children, its efficacy for adults is inconsistent. Several confounding variables are thought to contribute to the varying outcomes; nevertheless, demand for the advancement of BCG exists due to the increasing drug-resistance of TB (wikipedia.org). WORKS CITED Jefferson, Cord. ““Thousands Possibly Exposed in a Tuberculosis Outbreak Among L.A.’s Homeless.” Gawker.com, 22 Feb 2013. Web. Accessed at http://gawker.com/5986247/thousands-possibly-exposed-in-a-tuberculosis-outbreak-among-las-homeless on 11 Oct 2014. “Lung Disease & Respiratory Health Center” (n.p.). WebMD, 4 Apr 2013. Web. Accessed at http://www.webmd.com/lung/tc/tuberculosis-tb-topic-overview on 10 Oct

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