Introduction to paperMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is a very serious infection that affects public health. The purpose of this article is to provide the public/reader with a better understanding of what MRSA actually is. This document will include the different characteristics of the disease that result from the infection. Additionally, it will explain the latest disease statistics; identify a person's risk of contracting the disease, the methods used to control the spread of the disease and explain the implications for the disaster. Characteristics of MRSA disease The causative agent of MRSA is Staphylococcus aureus. According to the NIH, “Bacteria have been classified into two categories based on where the infection was first acquired” (NIH, 2014). The two different types of MRSA are hospital-acquired and community-associated MRSA. Hospital-acquired MRSA has been around for a long time and usually affects people within a healthcare facility. For example, people who have had surgery or had medical devices surgically implanted have been known to contract MRSA. It is also typically found in elderly patients or people with weak immune systems. Patients undergoing renal dialysis or using venous catheters or implants are known to have acquired MRSA (NIH, 2014). Patients who acquire MRSA in the hospital have a higher mortality rate and decreased longevity (Rogers, 2013). Community-associated MRSA has caused tremendous concern among public health workers because of who can contract MRSA. All CA-MRSA strains typically carry a new type of methicillin resistance locus that appears to cause a lower fitness burden (Otto, 2013). Unlike hospitalized MRSA, which can usually be traced back to a speci...... middle of paper ......es/mrsa/pages/default.aspxHeymann, D. (2008). Manual on the control of communicable diseases. (19th ed.). Balitmore, MD: American Public Health AssociationMaurer, F., & Smith, C. (2013). Public health/community nursing practice. (5 ed.). St. Louis, Missouri: Elsevier IncSharma, A., Rogers, C., Rimland, D., Stafford, C., Satola, S., Crispell, E., & Gaynes, R. (January 1, 2013). Post-discharge mortality in patients hospitalized with MRSA infection and/or colonization. Epidemiology and infection, 141, 6, 1187-98. Mossong, J., Gelhausen, E., Decruyenaere, F., Devaux, A., Perrin, M., Even, J., & Heisbourg, E. (January 01, 2013). Prevalence, risk factors and molecular epidemiology of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) colonization in residents of long-term care facilities in Luxembourg, 2010. Epidemiology and infection, 141, 6, 1199-206.