Second Ebola Case Indicates Breach In Protocol

The Ebola virus has infected a health care worker who tended to Thomas Eric Duncan, the first man to die from the virus in the United States. The Center for Disease Control states that this newest infection clearly indicates a breach in safety protocol. The worker was not able to indicate how the breach occurred, but they self-monitored after showing symptoms of the disease. The workers self-monitoring included isolation at the hospital.

Dr. Thomas Frieden, Director of the CDC stated that they are “deeply concerned about the preliminary positive in the health care worker who cared for the index patient in Dallas.” He also notes that the spread of Ebola can be stopped if the correct safety measures are met. The worker who cared for Duncan was in full protective gear, which has perplexed hospital officials.

A nurse in Spain recently contracted the disease after not carefully following protocols. That nurse touched her face with no gloves after handling tainted equipment.  Her patient,  Manuel Garcia Viejo, contracted Ebola after doing missionary work in Sierra Leone. When the nurse contracted the disease, it caused serious concern for being the first transmission outside of Africa. The unnamed nurse is currently in stable condition, although she is in isolation with her husband in a hospital in Madrid.

According to the CDC, Ebola is spread through close contact with a symptomatic person. It is contagious when an infected person shows signs of the disease like fever, body aches, and diarrhea.  Avoiding infected individuals and washing hands are trusted ways to avoid contamination. New York’s JFK airport started temperature checks on patients coming from the West African countries where the disease is present.    A check like this would not have prevented Thomas Eric Duncan from entering the country because he did not have a fever at the time of travel. Officials from the CDC caution that nothing “can get the risk to zero.”

Here are some helpful facts about the Ebola virus:

Prevention is key.  In response to the exposure at the hospital, Texas Health Resource University has made a push to educate and train  its workers. The CDC suggest that they hire an individual expressly to oversee infection control. Bogus cures are also finding their way to the market, but the Federal Trade Commission says that they are scams directed at the fear of contracting Ebola.

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