Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
To start my report I must voice how terrifying this documentary was for me. Then my
fears turned to frustration and anger; which I will discuss later. The documentaries first case
study is of a healthy 11-year-old American girl. Like a lot of children, she has a habit of
picking at scabs of minor cuts or scrapes. Because she began complaining of hip pain, she
was taken to a doctor. Within two days the child was admitted to ICU with pneumonia. The
doctors diagnosed her with “community associated” Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus
Aureus (CA-MRSA). MRSA infection is caused by a type of staph bacteria that's become
resistant to many of the antibiotics used to treat ordinary staph infections. Staph infections
are caused by staphylococcus bacteria, which are types of germs commonly found on the
skin or in the nose of even healthy people; most of the time they cause no problems.
However, staph infections can turn deadly if the bacterium enters the bloodstream, joints,
bones, lungs or heart. And your garden-variety staph infection can be treated with
antibiotics and or draining the infected area. However, some staff infections no longer
respond to common treatment. These are MRSA infections which occur in people who've
been in hospitals or other health care settings, like nursing homes or dialysis centers. These
are known as “health care associated “MRSA, (HA-MRSA). These infections are typically
associated with surgeries, intravenous tubing or artificial joints, (MC Staff, 2018).
Now this next information is one which I found frightening. New Delhi–Metallo-Beta-
lactamase 1 (NDM-1) is an enzyme that makes bacteria resistant to a broad range of beta-
lactam antibiotics. “The Lancet infectious disease Journal reports findings of the NDM-1
enzyme in 11 different types of bacteria. This is not in itself a bacteria, it's actually a resistant
gene that can turn bacteria into superbugs”, (F. Line narrator). It's resistant to almost all
antibiotics. But what's more frightening is this resistant gene can jump from bacteria to
bacteria. Making treatable infections suddenly untreatable! Even scarier is that NDM-1 isn't
just found in hospitals, it is also found alive and well in the community environment. After
two weeks in New Delhi hospital, Ricci was sent home to Seattle Washington, Harborview
Medical Center; and with him, came this deadly gram-negative bacteria within his wounds. It
turns out that there is very little clinical experience in treating this type of bacteria
anywhere. “Over the last 10 years, hospitals in the New York City area have become the
epicenter for another highly resistant and deadly type of gram negative bacteria. This one
didn't come from overseas, it is homegrown. It lives in the digestive system and like NDM-1
it's a gene that can spread its resistance to other bacteria. It's called Klebsialle Pheumoniae
Carbapenemase, (KPC)”. It began in the summer of 2011, when a woman carrying KPC was
admitted to the hospital. By the time the National Institute of Health (NIH), finally got a
handle of this gram negative bacterium, 18 patients were infected and six people died. Julie
Segre, PhD. Geneticist at NIH reports that the horror, they discovered of KPC, is that it has
the capacity to be a silent carrier gram negative.
I truly do believe that this is a complete unethical practice. We have plenty of data that
states, our scientific community are well aware of, what I believe is an inevitable medical
crisis. I believe that their decision to ignore this admitted danger is due to their admitted
focus on the company’s portfolio. So my hypothesis is that these companies are waiting for
the crisis to be near unmanageable and irreversible; only then will they step up and line up
to be the first recipients of federal grant monies for the long-awaited and long
acknowledged research and development need for “superbug” annihilation. I believe that
neither pharmaceutical companies nor the government wants to admit or face this crises
solely for monetary concern.
Citing’s:
(YouTube): Gram-Positive vs. Gram-Negative Bacteria, by Beverly Biology, June 12, 2016.