On Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed the Ebola diagnosed in the United States.
“An adult patient who traveled recently from Liberia to Dallas became ill and was admitted to a hospital there,” said Texas Children’s Hospital Physician-in-Chief Dr. Mark Kline.
“Having this case in Dallas, only 270 miles away, might engender fear, especially among health care workers who come in contact with patients who might have a suspected case of Ebola, but the factors that led to this epidemic in West Africa are not present here in Texas or the United States.”
Kline emphasized the U.S. will never suffer the kind of Ebola epidemic that Africa is experiencing today because of the hygienic conditions here and, in particular, because of the infection control practices in U.S. hospitals. Texas Children’s leaders remain confident about our preparedness plans should we receive a patient with Ebola at one of our sites.
“We’ve concentrated our efforts on the main portals of entry to the hospital and the system – for example, the Emergency Center and our primary care practices across the community,” Kline said. “We’ve gone from passively screening with posted signage to active screening. Every child and family is being asked specifically ‘Have you traveled in the past 21 days? If so, has any of that travel been to West Africa and, specifically, to the countries that have been impacted by Ebola?’ ”
If the answer to those questions is “yes,” Texas Children’s has a plan in every setting for moving the child and the family to an isolated area for further evaluation.
How Texas Children’s has prepared
Texas Children’s leaders in Infection Control, the Emergency Centers, Critical Care, Emergency Management, Texas Children’s Pediatrics and other areas monitor daily Ebola updates and recommendations from the CDC and the World Health Organization. They regularly assess Texas Children’s preparedness as it relates to the most current information, and there is a plan in place in the unlikely event we receive a patient with the disease.
Preparation has included:
- Simulation exercises and thorough education in areas that may be a point of entry for a patient with Ebola symptoms.
- Development of specific protocol outlining the steps we will take should we receive a patient with Ebola symptoms, including designated isolation rooms in the Emergency Centers and the PICUs.
- Securing an inventory of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), including full-coverage protective suits, which have been deployed to Texas Children’s Main and West campuses, Pavilion for Women and transport services (Kangaroo Crew).
“We’re doing everything we can to make certain that if we see a case of Ebola we will not have secondary cases among health care workers or among the other patients and families we serve,” Kline said.
“I’m very, very confident that with all of the policies and procedures and infection control precautions we have in place we will maintain our ability to care for patients and families and to care for one another as well.”
Important facts to remember about Ebola
Most of the population in West Africa doesn’t have Ebola.
As of September 30, there had been about 6,500 cases of Ebola diagnosed in Guinea, Liberia, Senegal and Sierra Leone. However, more than 20 million people live in these countries. This means fewer than 1 percent (.03 percent) have the virus – 99.97 percent of the residents in these countries do not have Ebola.
Diagnosis occurred in Dallas, but the disease source is still in Liberia.
Tuesday’s news revolves around the first case of Ebola that was diagnosed in the U.S. However, the source of transmission originated in Liberia – not here. Nothing has changed about the epidemiology of this virus in the U.S.
Ebola is not a highly infectious disease.
Ebola is a bloodborne pathogen – it is not transmitted like the flu or other airborne viruses. It is spread only when symptoms are present.
The CDC is the best source of information, not the media.
The best way to allay any concerns is to educate yourself. The most current information about Ebola is available online from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.