The Movie: Contagion

Contagion the movie is based on the spread of this new infection that was first believed that it was the flu. The Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization had to identify the type of virus and find the means to combat it that took several months. It takes several months, but it still spreads around. However there some people that are immune to this virus, as leading actor in this movie Matt Damon. The outbreak is threatening that they research on a new vaccine that is well succeeded.

During my past weeks taking Introduction to Public Health, we’ve learned about vaccination, Centers of Control Disease and more about health issues that affect the world. In this particular movie that I’ve seen before, it is definitely shown the importance of vaccines. How this vaccine helped to stop the spread and also avoided to those that weren’t immune, to be immune to this virus. It also helped me understand the GREAT importance of the role of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) here in the states. CDC investigates, does research and fully goes into detail to those new outbreaks and prevents them from happening.

Several terms were indirectly or directly shown during the movie. 

Outbreak. Outbreak is sudden or violent starts of something unwelcome, in this case a virus. An outbreak investigation which is help by he Outbreak Management System assisting public health worker in the managements of outbreak by enabling the integration of data on demographics, case investigation, laboratory results, exposures and other relevant factors. The National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance Program is a state based system that facilitates the exchange of data between public health and other laboratory and clinical providers. The outbreak is DEFINITELY relevant to the movie. Why? Because that the whole plot of the story, how an outbreak became a threat, a danger worldwide. It was a sudden virus that was spread around due to a mix of pig and bat hybrid virus at Beth’s Company at Macao that those pigs were then transferred to the casino where they were being roasted by the chef. When Beth came and the chef casually wiped his hands off and shook hands with Beth. That’s when it all started.

Isolation. Another term that was used during the movie both in the medical field isolating the virus to find the vaccine and the process of isolating from an environment that is contaminated. Dr. Hextall finds that the virus is a mix of genetic material form pig and bat virus. They start to find the cell culture to grow the new virus on called MEV-1 while on the other hand Professor Ian violates order from the CDC and destroys his samples seeing that theirs a line of bat cells that could help search for a new vaccine. As Dr. Hextall develops this new vaccine she vaccinates herself and exposes herself to the world. This vaccine was developed because using a “live” virus of it. Also Alan, he isolated himself on getting sick and how he claims that he derived from forsythia a homeopathic cure. Also Matt Damon is put in isolation but it turns out that he immune to the unknown virus.

Quarantine. A state, period or places of isolation in which people (in this case) that have been exposed to infectious or contagious disease are placed. At the beginning of the movie we see how actor Matt Damon and his daughter have been in quarantine since they have been exposed to the virus, that later we found out that is immune to it.  A military quarantine was imposed and were forced to go home. Also another scene that quarantine was shown was when Dr. Leonora, a World Health Organization epidemiologist travels to Hong Kong and collaborates with other locals epidemiologists to talk about Beth, who she was the primary patient that the virus was first identified on. One of the epidemiologists, Feng, isolates Dr. Leonora for the vaccines that turned out to be placebos, and she rushes to tell the villagers to run away before getting quarantined.

Contagion definitely highlighted the importance of Public Health Preparedness. Through the plot of this movie one major EXAMPLE that I saw that it could’ve have been better prepared was the communication. Communication worldwide was weak, and there was no sense of honesty or trust in the issue with the MEV-1 virus. A common frequency should’ve been used. They should’ve contacted Macao, were Beth was to do quarantine. Contact every city that surrounded it just in case. A lot of miscommunication was shown between doctors, between hospital facilities, epidemiologist, and even public health affairs itself. Also Centers for Disease Control was also an issue here during the movie because no communication was given and also there was limitations, that even though they were broken, it gave out a good cause for the outcome of the vaccine. Also due to the placebo incident, it really could’ve created chaos since they had no vaccines for the small little village there in Hong Kong. I think communication could have changed everything in this movie from doctors to public health affairs, to hospital facilities, to federal government, etc.