Quiroz 1 Karolina Quiroz T.

Ana Isaza Writing/Grammar 3 October 2011 KPC: Universal Pandemic Since forever we have heard about different pandemics, how they affect people and how they are transmitted all over the world. Even though we are used to these situation, it is really disturbing to know that although a bacteria has been all over the world, in our country it is turning into a situation where desperate measures must be taken. The KPC pandemic has been all over the news not only in panama but also in the rest of the world and even protocols are being made so that this pandemic stops and world health goes back to its normal state. I will now write on some background information on the KPC topic, take a side and then refute on this side. To prevent this bacteria to continue spreading not only in panama but also all around the world we must come to a solution and make it work. The KPC bacteria is a deadly bacteria that penetrates the body and inactivates many functions of the body as well, it is considered deadly because it is very resistant and almost immune to most antibiotics, making it really hard to destroy from the body. For the last couple of months, this bacterium has been around panama, causing approximately 50 deaths not only in the city but also in other provinces such as Chiriqu. Due to the situation panama is facing regarding this bacteria, health officials are trying to control the spreading of the bacteria all over panama and trying to take the correct measurements so that this bacteria does not continue spreading. The ministry of health in panama is trying to make the right choices and take the right decisions when it comes to this bacterium. Since the two first cases of KPC where reported in the CSS, some measurements were taken in the CSS and other public hospitals. According to social security specialists, the bacteria entered the hospital complex by the ICU ducts and air purifiers, so the measurements taken

Quiroz 2 where increase environmental cleanup, crop monitoring, antimicrobial policy and contact precautions between patients. With all these measurements it was thought that the bacteria will not spread and that patients will be in a healthy and controlled environment. Although all these measurements were taken, the bacterium still unleashed itself and has affected now 86 people in panama, from whom 46 have already deceased. If this has happened, then the ministry of health did not take the necessary measurements to prevent the spreading of this bacterium or maybe the ministry just said they would make all these measurements real, but at the end they did not really happened, because at the end, if the measurements where actually taken, then why have 46 people already died? Also there is proof that relatives of one of the people that died from KPC where never warned that this patient had the bacteria, meaning that they could not protect themselves from it, since they had no idea that their relative had the bacteria inside his body. Some people have even required the dismissal of the director of the CSS, since it is thought that he and other CSS administratives underestimated the power of the bacteria and almost ignored the warning given on it. Another thing that could have prevented the transfer of the bacteria could have been the separation of the CSS hospital from the clinic, that due that they are both connected in one building; people from the clinic actually have been affected by the bacteria when originally it was only present in the hospital. Due that this bacteria happens to spread really quickly we must find a solution to this problem in our country before the situation worsens and more people die or become affected by it. Among some of the measurements that should be taken by the ministry of health, should be separating the clinic from the actual hospital, also dismissing the current director of the CSS and hiring someone new, and also as Panamanians who pay taxes and deserve a correct health care, demand for a better service and for a better administrative team in the CSS, so that pandemics do not continue unleashing in our country and that no more people become infected with the bacteria and to prevent deaths too.

Quiroz 3 A solution must be found so that this bacteria stops spreading not only in panama, but also all over the world. I really believe that if we continue living in this society where things happen and no one does anything for it, we will all end up in bad place and pandemics such as this will continue to happen, which is not good at all for us or the rest of the world. I really recommend you to research on the topic of the KPC bacteria and to be aware of it, and demand for a better health care system in panama, so that we all can be benefited by it and not affected by it.