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Thank you ... Sandy Dhuyvetter
CDC Emergency Partners Update
2014 Ebola Response - August 22, 2014
CDC has activated its Emergency Operations Center to respond to
Ebola. Below, please find resources and guidance that we hope will be
useful to you and your organization. Please
share with your colleagues and networks.
In this email:
· Ebola
Cases and Deaths (West Africa)
· Online
Resources
· Summary
Key Messages (full Key Messages document attached)
Ebola Cases and Deaths (West Africa)
Updated: August 20, 2014
·
Suspected and Confirmed Case Count: 2615
·
Suspected Case Deaths: 1427
·
Laboratory Confirmed Cases: 1528
Online Resources
General
Outbreak Information
Multimedia
Resources
Medscape
video: Infection Prevention and Control of Ebola Virus Disease in U.S.
Hospitals http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/index.html
(NEW)
WebMD video: CDC Director Dr.
Tom Frieden discusses Ebola outbreak: http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/video/cdc-director-tom-frieden-md-on-ebola
(NEW)
Content Syndication
Social Media Resources
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Summary Key Messages
A full key messages document is attached.
·
This
is the largest Ebola outbreak in history and the first in West Africa.
·
The
outbreak in West Africa is worsening, but CDC, along with other U.S. government
agencies and international partners, is taking steps to respond to this rapidly
changing situation.
·
Ebola
poses no substantial risk to the U.S. general population.
·
On
August 8, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the current Ebola
outbreak is a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
o The PHEIC declaration underscores the
need for a coordinated international response to contain the spread of Ebola.
·
A
person infected with Ebola virus is not contagious until symptoms appear.
·
The
virus is spread through direct contact (through broken skin or
unprotected mucous membranes in, for example, the eyes, nose, or mouth) with
the blood or body fluids such as, but not limited to, feces, saliva, urine,
vomit, and semen of a person who is sick with Ebola, or with objects like
needles that have been contaminated with the virus, or infected animals.
o Ebola is not spread through the
air or by water or, in general, by food; however, in Africa, Ebola may be
spread as a result of handling bushmeat (wild animals hunted for food) and
contact with infected bats.
·
As
of August 22, no confirmed Ebola cases have been reported in the United States.
o
In
2014, two U.S. healthcare workers who were infected with Ebola virus in Liberia
were transported to a hospital in the United States. Both patients have been
released from the hospital after laboratory testing confirmed that they no
longer have Ebola virus circulating in their blood. CDC has advised the hospital
that there is no public health concern with their release and that they do not
pose a risk to household contacts or to the public.
o
CDC
has received many calls from health departments and hospitals about suspected
Ebola cases in travelers from the affected countries. These calls have been
triaged appropriately, with some samples being sent to CDC for testing. All
samples sent to CDC have thus far been negative.
o
Samples
from other U.S. patients under investigation (all of whom recently traveled to West
Africa) are being tested as they are received. To date, all persons under
investigation in the United States have tested negative for Ebola.
·
As a precaution, CDC is communicating with American
healthcare workers about how to detect and isolate patients who may have Ebola
and how they can protect themselves from infection.
·
Early recognition of Ebola is important for providing
appropriate patient care and preventing the spread of infection. Healthcare
providers should be alert for and evaluate any patients who may have Ebola.
·
CDC and
its partners at U.S. ports of entry are currently not doing enhanced screening
of passengers traveling from the affected countries. However, CDC works with
international public health organizations, other federal agencies, and the
travel industry to identify sick travelers arriving in the United States and
take public health actions to prevent the spread of communicable
diseases.
·
CDC also is assisting with exit screening and
communication efforts in West Africa to prevent sick travelers from getting on
planes.
·
CDC recommends that people avoid nonessential travel to
Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.
·
CDC recommends that people practice enhanced precautions
if traveling to Nigeria.
·
Recommendations and guidance may change as new
information becomes available.
