1918 Influenza Pandemic in South Asia Reflection

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School

University of Hawaii *

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156

Subject

Medicine

Date

Oct 30, 2023

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pdf

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Uploaded by MagistrateDangerAlpaca27

1. Describe the impact of the 1918 Influenza pandemic on Nirala and his family. What happens to them during the period of the disease? When the Influenza broke out in 1918 Nirala's father had passed away a year before that. He felt like he needed to get a job to support his family. Although soon after his Wife was on the brink of passing away and once he went to his in-laws house she had passed. Nirala didn’t know the intensity of this outbreak until he started hearing about everyone falling ill. His family all quickly fell ill and passed away. As Nirala said, “My family disappeared in the blink of an eye” (Khanna). Everyone passed including his laborers, sharecroppers, and people from his ancestral village. He took his family to Ganga to be buried. 2. What kind of medical care or financial aid does Nirala have available to him? Who helps him bury his dead family members? Nirala's sister-in-law's three sons fell ill but he was able to nurse them back to health. There was little to no medical care for people in poverty. Which shows he did not have any kind of medical care or financial aid. Kulli Bhaat was trying to find Nirala and ended up finding him on a mound in Ganga. It was said Kulli could sense his grief and offered support during this time. He helped bury his family and they set out for Ashram shortly after. 3. The government report, "Influenza in Bombay," is careful not to blame the British government directly, but we can still glean indirect information on how British handling of the epidemic affected lives. According to the report, where did the disease come from? Why did it affect local people more than Europeans? It was said to have originated from Asiatic Russia, which then got carried to Petrograd, Arid, London, and finally reached Bombay. Although many people believe it originated from Bokhara. The influenza infected more local people because it was during the war time and many of their people were out fighting. It spread throughout the troops from Europe and India resulting in infections that did not show any major signs they were sick. So the troops from India were being sent home on crowded ships carrying the virus which resulted in them getting sick due to no quarantine rules. 4. The author of "Public Health" in the Young India excerpt for sure blames the British. What are some things the British could have done to help people like Nirala? The British could have provided a sustainable life for his people so they wouldn’t be in poverty. Citizens in property experience malnutrition which puts them at a higher risk of infection. It has been said that their rural tract and housing are not sanitary. By enforcing and

providing better sanitation, the people would have a smaller chance of infection. If the British provided better medical care that could be reached by everyone, people like Nirala could benefit from it. 5. What did you learn about the 1918 Flu Pandemic from these texts that might be different, or similar, to what you learned in the video? From what I learned in the text and video, the Influenza of 1918 spread quickly which resulted in many people dying. There were no signs of having a vaccine but were given quarantine measures. One thing I found different between the text and video was that the text didn’t mention why it came to be known as the “Spanish Flu.” While in the video it was said to be due to the fact other nations suppressed the news about the flu except for Spain. Which led to everyone believing it originated from Spain. 6. What questions would you like to ask any of the authors, or what information would you want to research further, if you had an opportunity? If I had an opportunity to research further on the 1918 Influenza I’d want to know how families were trying to prevent the flu. I believe that many families have tried different tactics when approaching the disease. I’d also like to research further about the thought process of the government. How they thought they should address the issue and help the community. In addition if their families got hit with the flu and the actions they would take if it happened.

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