Analytical Process Writing Assignment: West Nile Virus

Analytical Process Essay – West Nile Virus
Your Name
Your Institution of Affiliation
February 27, 2017
Introduction
Ever since I started my own career as a vocational nurse in California, I’ve never been this wary of the threats that mosquito-related diseases could bring. This is because of the fact that for most of the working hours that I spent in my profession, I’ve never encountered such cases that led to dire consequences, such as death. Because of this mindset, I’ve become lax when it comes to the precautions and warnings about these kinds of diseases that I learnt during my undergraduate years. This mindset even translated to my daily routine and led me to ignore those suggested practices that I learnt (e.g. throwing away stagnant water). However, as I heard the news from my colleagues that over 108 people have been infected and four have died because from the West Nile Virus this year and four have died, I immediately realized how grave the situation is (Xia, 2016).
Before the breakout, I spent most of my work hours caring for patients dealing with all variety of diseases. This includes cases from simple common colds and flu to more severe ones like cancer, aids, and pneumonia. These have been a common routine of my life, which is most likely the reason why I don’t find it very stressful and threatening. However, as I found out how cases West Nile Virus have been detected in the state with cases of deaths, I realized that I have to be wary not only for my own sake, but also for the sake of my own family as well as the patients that I care for.
What captured my attention when the news broke, was the fact that the disease has no available treatments yet (Xia, 2016). Despite the fact that 80% of those infected never develop any further symptoms, the remaining number of people who develops the symptoms still faces almost lethal repercussion such as paralysis and meningitis. Perhaps, if not because of my own expertise and knowledge about the severity of the West Nile Virus, these numbers would have only appeared as such, without any background context and/or even a feeling of threat and caution towards the situation.
After knowing about the situation, I immediately made sure that I follow the steps that are required during events when mosquito-related diseases are lurking around. To start with, I immediately made sure that I and my family are safe from these risks by buying mosquito repellents and by installing w...