Experimental Design and Participation, Essay Example

How would you ethically justify treating some patients with the Lyme vaccine and not others?

I would justify the treatment choices and selection of patients taking part in the program based on risk exposure. The Lyme Disease risk factors have been identified as geographical area based on climate, and exposure. Therefore, based on evidence-based research, I would identify the at-risk population. According to the latest CDC report (3), “In the United States, most infections occur in the following areas: • Northeast, from Virginia to Maine • North-central states, mostly in Wisconsin and Minnesota • West Coast, particularly northern California”. Therefore, I would focus on these geographical areas. Further, those who have a history of exposure to ticks would be placed in the “at risk” population and selected for treatment.

Look up and state the rates (or total numbers, I’ll accept either one) for Lyme disease for New York State state. (CDC or the NYSDOH will have the info). Is it broken down by region?

The statistics of Lyme disease are broken down to states, but not regions, and the CDC website states that 96 percent of new cases in 2014 occurred in 14 states of the country.

The below table shows the number of new cases on New York state between 2005 and 2014, as well as the incidence rate, which is double the US. average.

Describe in a short paragraph what would be your major concern as a public health official in setting up a vaccine experiment to test the efficacy of the Lyme vaccine. Would you volunteer to have the vaccine tested?

My main concern regarding the research would be to ensure that the right population is selected. It is important when testing a vaccine that the researcher uses a random sample, and this means that the entire population is covered. This is important to discover the potential side effects and adverse reactions that can be associated with the new drug. Further, it is important that ethical guidelines are followed, and the safety of the vaccine is confirmed and documented before conducting the research, to eliminate the risk of causing harm for participants. I would certainly volunteer for the research, as a new vaccine could potentially save thousands of lives.

Works Cited

CDC. “Lyme Disease: What You Need to Know”. 2015. Web.

CDC. “Reported cases of Lyme disease by state or locality, 2005-2014” 2014. Web. <http://www.cdc.gov/lyme/stats/chartstables/reportedcases_statelocality.html>