Maine Medical Center: No confirmed case of Ebola, patient under observation
The patient tested negative for Ebola and was released today. Earlier in the day the article also mentioned that they held the patient in a tb room with negative air pressure.
PORTLAND — Maine Medical Center in Portland is holding a patient for observation under stepped-up federal precautions aimed at preventing the spread of the deadly Ebola virus.
The individual has been isolated, and the hospital is following policies developed by the World Health Organization, which exceed the Ebola guidance issued by the federal CDC, he said.
Doctors and nurses interacting with the patient must wear protective apparel that exceeds federal CDC recommendations, Valenti said, including impervious suits, gloves, face protection and, in some cases, personal respirators worn inside a protective hood, he said.
The hospital also has instituted a buddy system for when health care workers put on and later remove protective gowning,
“I’d be extraordinarily upset if somebody became accidentally infected,” Valenti said. “I feel terrible about this nurse in Dallas. Everybody is blaming her, which I think is terribly inappropriate. This woman put her life on the line to take care of the patient.”
Frieden said health officials are re-examining the recommended protocols, particularly ones concerning the removal of protective gear after contact with an Ebola patient.
“We have to rethink the way we address Ebola infection control,” he said at the Monday news conference. “Even a single infection is unacceptable.”