Beating Back the Devil

Beating Back the Devil [Unabridged] [Audible Audio Edition]

Author: | Language: English | ISBN: B000776K14 | Format: PDF, EPUB

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Beating Back the Devil
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The universal instinct is to run from an outbreak of disease. These doctors run toward it. They always keep a bag packed. They seldom have more than 24 hours before they are dispatched. They are told only their country of destination and the epidemic they will tackle when they get there.

They are the disease detective corps of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the federal agency that tracks and tries to prevent disease outbreaks and bioterrorist attacks around the world. Formally called the Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS), they have confronted outbreaks of AIDS, Ebola virus, toxic shock syndrome, and E. coli 0157; they have helped eradicate smallpox and push back polio. Now they hunt down the deadly threats that dominate our headlines: SARS, West Nile virus, and anthrax.

In this riveting narrative, Maryn McKenna follows the first class of disease detectives to come to the CDC after 9/11. She goes on scene with these talented young researchers, who trade two years of low pay and extremely long hours for the chance to be part of the group who heroically tries to stop epidemics...before they stop us.

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• Audible Audio Edition
• Listening Length: 9 hours and 23 minutes
• Program Type: Audiobook
• Version: Unabridged
• Publisher: Tantor Audio
• Audible.com Release Date: December 10, 2004
• Whispersync for Voice: Ready
• Language: English
• ASIN: B000776K14

This fascinating book explores the work of the Epidemic Intelligence Service, a division of the Center for Disease Control. This group of elite health care workers trained in early disease detection and containment travel throughout the United States and the world to hot spots, with the goal of preventing deaths and widespread infection. Author Maryn McKenna, after introducing the history and structure of the EIS, launches into specific cases of disease detection, with chapters dedicated to malaria, cholera, AIDS, small pox, SARS, anthrax, TB, and others. Some chapters are devoted to outbreaks of well-known diseases, but the most intriguing are those focusing on the series of coincidences, connections, and insight that led to the discovery of new public health crises such as AIDS and SARS.

McKenna begins her book with the first day of training for the EIS class of 2002 and follows many of them through their two years of service, but she does not limit her narrative to the stories of these health care workers. She reaches back in time to various outbreaks and interviews former EIS agents instrumental in detecting and controlling the spread of infection. While this book does not have the narrative drive and heart palpitating scenes of The Hot Zone, it is nonetheless a compelling portrait of disease. The chapter on SARS in particular illustrates the danger that these health care professionals face. Written for the lay person, this book never gets technical and so might disappoint those who want in-depth analysis instead of detective work.

For those with a general interest in epidemiology, Beating Back the Devil offers insight into disease detection.

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