Throughout history there have been many epidemics, and the way that they have been recorded has varied tremendously. Elizabeth J. Davies writing Elizabeth J. Davies writing on the influence that struck Camp Lewis in Washington goes on to give some details on the process that the people of the town were taken in order to combat the disease. Davies writing is lacking in many aspects when it comes to explaining how the individual was affected, the symptoms, cures, and how it spread.
Davies writing does not show the reader how critical the influenza that struck Camp Lewis in Washington really was, and instead it just gives a generic view of what occurred, and how it was dealt. Although the writing is lacking in many aspect it does have a few parts that are important that makes the reader understand the struggles that many faced during this period. It also allows people to compare the medical field today with that of the period in which this report was written. In many other historical documents those who have observed epidemics have always tried to explain the symptoms that those who were affected had.
Elizabeth J. Davies documented the influenza epidemic in Camp Lewis in what is now known as, “The Influenza Epidemic and How We Tried to Control it”. Davies writing does not mention the symptoms that the infected people were showing, and the reason why this is critical is because without having an understanding of what the symptoms were the reader is not able to comprehend why this type of influenza was so drastic that it needed to be documented. There are many other things that Davies should have included in the documentation that would have enhance the reader understanding of the situation that the people of Camp Lewis were facing.
The report should have also gone into more details about how the epidemic affected the community as a whole. Another thing that Davies should have added to the report on the Influenza epidemic in Camp Lewis was how she, and doctors of the time thought that the disease spread. The reason why this would have added more dynamic to her writing is because it would have given the reader an idea to the reasons why they took the precautions that they did, but without the reader knowing how it spread, the meaning behind the steps that were taken are lost.
Explaining how the influenza spread would have also left record that others in the future could have used in order to fight against it, but she does not mention if the way that it is spread is known to any in this period or how she thinks that it is spread. All of this leaves the reader wondering why did they take such steps as putting masks on the patient, and using a sponge to wash those who were the most seek. One thing that Davies should have written more about in the report was the type of medicine that the nurses, and doctors were given to the patients.
The report does explain steps that were taken in order to make the patient more health, but it does not give enough details. Davies also did not emphasize strong enough how bad the epidemic was. She does give enough details that let us understand that the influenza that hit Camp Lewis was bad, such as school being closed, people leaving their doors open, so that the nurse could come, and go. Other examples that she gives are how there were sometimes three people in one bed that were sick, and how whole family were bedridden.
All of this shows that many people were affected by the influence, but it oes not show us that the influenza that stuck Camp Lewis in Washington was so devastating that it needed to be recorded, so others would know about it. There were also a few things that Davies in her writing explains marvelously. One was how understaffed the medical field was at this period in time. She explains how there were not enough nurses or doctors to take care of all the patients that had been affected by the influenza. Another thing that is represented with great detail is how at first the nurses were at disarray on what to do about the patients.
Davies explains that as time passed that they started to understand what steps they needed to take in order to keep their patients in better health, and keep themselves from getting sick. In all, Elizabeth J. Davies writing on the influenza that struck Camp Lewis in Washington was lacking in many aspects, but it also had a few things that showed the reader how the epidemic was handled in this particular case. Davies writing should have gone into much more detail then what it did, and if it had done this, the reader would have been able to comprehend the significance of her writing