County officials discuss Ebola readiness

Van Wert independent/submitted information

Although chances are slim that an Ebola outbreak would occur locally, a meeting held Monday ensured that plans are in place if an outbreak should occur.

Approximately 50 people, including health and disaster officials, first responders and medical personnel, attended Monday’s Van Wert County Disaster Task Force meeting to learn more about local plans to respond in the event that the Ebola virus should be found in Van Wert County.

Although there are currently no confirmed cases of Ebola in Ohio, local officials are taking this opportunity to ensure that the community is prepared to defend against this serious health threat, if necessary. A meeting attendee who works in 15 Ohio counties commended Van Wert County for taking a proactive approach to this situation. Like any other public health threat, if Ebola is eventually found in Van Wert County, the County Health Department would be the lead agency in the response.

“Van Wert County is well prepared”, said Van Wert County Emergency Management Director Rick McCoy. “We have been preparing for situations like this for many years in developing response plans and exercising our readiness.

“Our local Health Department, county hospital and EMA have been talking daily between agencies and with the state,” he added. “I can reassure the public that we are monitoring the situation in Ohio and around the country and will be ready to respond immediately if the virus were to spread. If we as a nation can quickly isolate and quarantine Ebola, then we have the opportunity to end it quickly (and keep it) from affecting others.”

“Our team at Van Wert County Hospital, along with other Ohio hospitals, is preparing to diagnose and treat a patient with the Ebola virus in order to best protect our patients, as well as our staff,” said Linna Kelly, infection preventionist at Van Wert County Hospital. “Initial staff education began in August and has been ramped up with the most recent developments.”

Kelly also noted that the county has an organizational pandemic plan, which was developed for dealing with diseases such as SARS, H1N1, smallpox and avian flu.

“This plan has been revised specifically for dealing with a potential case of Ebola,” Kelly noted. “We have been working with staff regarding specific questions to ask, symptoms to look for, infection prevention, personal protective equipment as well as isolation protocol. Caring for our patients is paramount while ensuring the safety of our caregivers is in the forefront of our decision making.”

“Our department is working closely with the Ohio Department of Health and is following the recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control,” said Van Wert County Health Commissioner Dr. Paul Kalogerou. “Our staff, health care agencies and first responders understand the importance of early risk assessment, which will help us provide prompt intervention and initiation of protocols. We are fortunate to have in place experienced personnel and an established and tested emergency response plan.”

Ebola is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection through the Ebola virus and is spread by touching the blood or bodily fluids of a person who is sick with Ebola. Recent media reports have said the Ebola virus cannot be spread through the air, which means that the virus does not live in the air, or remain there for long periods of time. However, it is possible to contract the virus through contact with droplets of bodily fluid released into the air by the cough or sneeze of an infected person.

A person infected with the virus can’t spread the disease until symptoms appear. Symptoms of Ebola include a fever higher than 100.4^oF, severe headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain, and unexplained bleeding or bruising. Many of these symptoms mirror the symptoms of influenza, but are an increased concern in people who have recently traveled to West Africa or had close contact with a person infected with the Ebola virus.

Because there is currently no cure for Ebola, the only effective way of stopping the spread of the disease is through quarantine or isolation of sick individuals, and monitoring people who have come into contact with those individuals for symptoms of the disease. Quarantine and isolation are two ways to prevent the spread of disease by keeping sick people separate from others who are healthy.

Monitoring simply consists of watching for symptoms in people who may have been exposed to Ebola. These activities are currently being conducted in affected areas by public health professionals from local and state health departments, as well as the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

It is important to remember that, while Ebola is a deadly disease, the probability of becoming infected by this virus is low. A total of three cases of Ebola have been confirmed in the United States since the epidemic began in West Africa earlier this year, and one of these cases of Ebola infection resulted in death.  In comparison, the CDC estimates that over 53,000 people died from influenza and pneumonia in the United States in 2010.

To help answer questions from the public, the Ohio Department of Health recently opened a 24-hour call center. For more information, contact the call center at 866.800.1404 or visit the Ohio Department of Health website at www.odh.ohio.gov.