EBOLA, too close for comfort

[tombogan03884]

Ebola, at this time, with only 4 actual cases in the US is no where near the health threat it is being portrayed as. What it currently is is a smoke screen to take attention off the enterovirus imported by Obama's illegal aliens that is killing children in 46 states. CDC incompetence could change that, but for now, the ignored, Virus is far more dangerous.

[brushmore]

So far the only people here in the US that are getting it are unfortunate medical personnel.  That tells me that people aren't contagious until they are very sick but they seem to be highly contagious.  That is if we what we are being told is indeed true.  It's not like anyone would want to hide things since there is an important election next week... 

[alfsauve]

That is if we what we are being told is indeed true.  It's not like anyone would want to hide things since there is an important election next week...

Ya think?  If there's anything currently to be concerned over, it's the statements by our government.

[JoeG]

I think the lesson that is not discussed much is that it is not the CDC that will treat you or your family if they get sick it is the local hospital. Anyone who has spent time around a hospital will notice that they are overworked and understaffed and doing without as much as possible to keep their costs down.

As far as I can tell from a distance the failures that allowed the 2 nurses to be infected are due to THE HOSPITAL staff not actually following the guidelines that do in fact work. The CDC was right that they told all the hospitals what to do, what they didn't say but must know is that there is no money or time at a local level to train your staff in something they will not likely face on a daily basis. I'm not saying this right, just real.

The dirty secret in our hospital systems is that one of the biggest problems that they can not get under control are Hospital Acquired Infections (HAI). Usually it is just some horrible multidrug resistant staff infection that eats your flesh and not a high profile news worthy disease like ebola.

The old joke about staying away from hospitals because they are full of sick people is about right. When the first nurse got sick I thought she likely had bad PPE removal habits as this very hard to teach people. When the second nurse came down with it, I did some digging online and learned that it took them "a few days" to get the PPE protocols into force (and everybody trained) in the IC unit!!! Wow this is kind of like knowing your car has no brakes but driving to the store anyway.

Remember the CDC will not treat you it will be the harried nurse that is about to go home after a double shift.  If you are at a med center and someone comes in to treat you and does not wash their hands. Stop them and ask them to please wash before treating you!! You don't want to bring anything home with you that you didn't arrive with!

[Timothy]

I think the lesson that is not discussed much is that it is not the CDC that will treat you or your family if they get sick it is the local hospital. Anyone who has spent time around a hospital will notice that they are overworked and understaffed and doing without as much as possible to keep their costs down.

As far as I can tell from a distance the failures that allowed the 2 nurses to be infected are due to THE HOSPITAL staff not actually following the guidelines that do in fact work. The CDC was right that they told all the hospitals what to do, what they didn't say but must know is that there is no money or time at a local level to train your staff in something they will not likely face on a daily basis. I'm not saying this right, just real.

The dirty secret in our hospital systems is that one of the biggest problems that they can not get under control are Hospital Acquired Infections (HAI). Usually it is just some horrible multidrug resistant staff infection that eats your flesh and not a high profile news worthy disease like ebola.

The old joke about staying away from hospitals because they are full of sick people is about right. When the first nurse got sick I thought she likely had bad PPE removal habits as this very hard to teach people. When the second nurse came down with it, I did some digging online and learned that it took them "a few days" to get the PPE protocols into force (and everybody trained) in the IC unit!!! Wow this is kind of like knowing your car has no brakes but driving to the store anyway.

Remember the CDC will not treat you it will be the harried nurse that is about to go home after a double shift.  If you are at a med center and someone comes in to treat you and does not wash their hands. Stop them and ask them to please wash before treating you!! You don't want to bring anything home with you that you didn't arrive with!

I'm the unwilling recipient of TWO major infections due to hospital staff inefficiencies in cleanliness.  The hospital staff is directly responsible in both cases and certainly responsible for four (4) hip implants that I received in a one year period.

I've seen very little evidence that they've learned anything either!  Shortly after I was cleared of my last severe infection I found an article that stated only 2 out of 10 doctors and nurses actually wash their hands between patients!  Hospitals ARE some of the germiest, filthy places to be kept!

I doubt very much that CDC protocol will change the basic flawed human function of most hospitals...

[Sponsor]

[alfsauve]

To back up the "unprepardness" theme, today AP released a story on just that.


http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/ap-impact-us-health-care-unprepared-ebola-26551097

The U.S. health care apparatus is so unprepared and short on resources to deal with the deadly Ebola virus that even small clusters of cases could overwhelm parts of the system, according to an Associated Press review of readiness at hospitals and other components of the emergency medical

If don't want to read the whole report just the first and last will sum it up.  Particularly about how many health care workers will abandon their own jobs if faced with working with Ebola patients.

[tombogan03884]

Of COURSE the health system is unprepared for Ebola. It has NEVER appeared anywhere except West Africa before, because every other out break has been tightly contained.

[JoeG]

To back up the "unprepardness" theme, today AP released a story on just that.


http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/ap-impact-us-health-care-unprepared-ebola-26551097

If don't want to read the whole report just the first and last will sum it up.  Particularly about how many health care workers will abandon their own jobs if faced with working with Ebola patients.

Ebola is not that hard to stop in a 1st world setting, but it is damn horrific. You have to handle an infected person with significant symptoms or handle their ejected body fluids. It does not go airborne and just handling a surface that a person with not visible symptoms has never been shown to transmit.

Uganda is the model for this. 40 years ago they had an outbreak and lost 400+ people. 30 years ago they lost ~200, 20 years ago they lost 20=30 and 10 years ago the had an outbreak and contained it to the first 4 cases. We know how to contain it but you do have to do the hard work to protect and to decon everything.

Our problem will be that everyone is multitasking and in a hurry. One oops is all it takes.

[alfsauve]

Of COURSE the health system is unprepared for Ebola. It has NEVER appeared anywhere except West Africa before, because every other out break has been tightly contained.

It doesn't have to be "Ebola", the health care system is unprepared for any really deadly virus.   Ebola just happens to be the current concern.

The NIH has a whole department that is tasked with making sure we were prepared and they've fallen flat on their face.   What say Dr. Lurie? 

[MikeBjerum]

And then we need to deal with stupid people, and I don't mean the politicians 

The nurse in Maine, Miss Hickox, who has been exposed through her work and was still allowed back into our nation before proven safe is thumbing her nose at all of us and potentially putting us at risk.  Even though she has been ordered to stay in quarantine she refuses, because she is apparently smart enough to just know whether she is a danger or not.

Our President does not want to over react and cause undue hardship and financial woes by imposing quarantines, travel restrictions, and other safeguards.  Miss Hickox is taking advantage of this, and daring the government to stop her from possibly exposing others to this disease.  I wonder what opinion she has on having unprotected sex with someone who has been exposed to HIV but is not showing symptoms.  Maybe she would like to get her next vaccination with the same needle as someone else who did not appear to be sick.