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Post by Admin on Nov 14, 2014 22:39:18 GMT
The Texas hospital that battled Ebola this fall got a special visit from former President George W. Bush today. Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas became the first to diagnose an Ebola patient in the United States and then faced a nightmare as that patient died and two nurses became infected.  “The last five weeks have been a trying time for the city and residents of Dallas and especially the people of Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas,” Bush told the hospital staff, including Ebola survivor nurse Amber Vinson. “I appreciate the way the hospital and its professionals are sharing lessons learned in a way that helps the broader United States health care community respond to this terrible virus. As someone who has gone to Presbyterian hospital for care myself, I know it is a dedicated, professional and caring place, and I’m confident it is doing what is necessary to reaffirm the community’s trust.”   Today, Texas's Ebola ordeal ended when the last of its 177 people who had contact with the three Ebola patients completed the 21-day monitoring period, Ebola-free. President Barack Obama also phoned Texas officials today including Gov. Rick Perry to thank them for their work on the Ebola situation. |
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Post by Admin on Nov 15, 2014 22:56:39 GMT
 A surgeon who contracted Ebola while working in Sierra Leone arrived in Nebraska Saturday for treatment at a biocontainment unit where two other people with the disease have been successfully treated. Dr. Martin Salia, who was diagnosed with Ebola on Monday, landed at Eppley Airfield in Omaha on Saturday afternoon and was being transported to the Nebraska Medical Center. The hospital said the medical crew transporting Salia, 44, determined he was stable enough to fly, but that information from the team caring for him in Sierra Leone indicated he was critically ill and “possibly sicker than the first patients successfully treated in the United States.” The disease has killed more than 5,000 people in West Africa, mostly in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leona. Of the 10 people treated for the disease in the U.S., all but one has recovered. Salia was working as a general surgeon at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in the Sierra Leone capital of Freetown. Kissy is not an Ebola treatment unit, but Salia worked in at least three other facilities, United Methodist News said, citing health ministry sources. Salia is a Sierra Leone citizen who lives in Maryland.  The U.S. State Department said it was helping facilitate the transfer of Salia; the U.S. Embassy in Freetown said he was paying for the expensive evacuation. The travel costs and care of other Ebola patients flown to the U.S. were covered by the groups they worked for in West Africa. |
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Post by Admin on Nov 17, 2014 22:33:58 GMT
 A surgeon who contracted the Ebola virus while working in Sierra Leone died Monday at a Nebraska hospital where he was being treated in a biocontainment unit, the facility said in a statement. A statement released Monday by Nebraska Medical Center said Dr. Martin Salia "has passed away as a result of the advanced symptoms of the disease." Hospital spokesman Taylor Wilson said Salia died shortly after 4 a.m. Monday. Salia's body will be cremated, Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the biocontainment unit said in a press conference. Salia, 44, was being treated in the medical center's biocontainment unit after arriving Saturday by plane from West Africa. He was transported by ambulance to the hospital, where two other Ebola patients have been successfully treated. On Sunday officials had described his condition as "an hour-by-hour situation." "Dr. Salia was extremely critical when he arrived here, and unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we weren't able to save him," Smith said. Salia was placed on dialysis, a ventilator and given several medications to support his organ systems. He was given the experimental drug ZMapp on Saturday. He also received a plasma transfusion from an Ebola survivor -- a treatment that is believed to provide antibodies to fight the virus. Hospital officials declined to identify the donor. The first two Ebola patients to return to the U.S., Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol, were treated with ZMapp in August. Their treatments exhausted that supply of ZMapp and Salia was treated using a new batch of the drug. "We used every possible treatment available to give Dr. Salia every possible opportunity for survival," Smith said. "As we have learned, early treatment with these patients is essential. In Dr. Salia's case, his disease was already extremely advanced by the time he came here for treatment."  Salia had been working as a general surgeon at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in the Sierra Leone capital of Freetown. It's not clear whether he was involved in the care of Ebola patients. Kissy is not an Ebola treatment unit, but Salia worked in at least three other facilities, United Methodist News said, citing health ministry sources. Salia, a Sierra Leone citizen who was a permanent resident of the U.S. and lived in Maryland, first showed Ebola symptoms on Nov. 6 but tested negative for the virus. He eventually tested positive on Monday. Smith called the initial test results "not unusual." |
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Post by Admin on Nov 19, 2014 22:38:11 GMT
The Duke of Cambridge has backed a music video made in Sierra Leone about tackling the spread of ebola, telling people in West Africa: 'Keep safe - the world is thinking of you'. William recorded a video message for local film makers Future View who created the song Ebola is Real to educate people on how to prevent the transmission of the disease. The Duke, whose heartfelt message was posted on Future View’s Twitter account and on YouTube, paid tribute to those working in the region in the fight against the virus. 5,504 have died according to figures supplied by the World Health Organisation, of which 1,545 have been in Sierra Leone. The WHO has also warned that at current rates of infection, up to 10,000 new cases could be being diagnosed each week by mid December. 'I’ve been watching with great concern what’s been happening in West Africa due to ebola,' said William in the video which was recorded at Kensington Palace. 'I wanted to take time to add my name to this video by Future View called Ebola is Real. It’s an educational piece that will keep you guys safe on how to treat and prevent the spread of ebola.  'Health care workers down in West Africa have been doing a tremendous job and long may that continue. I want to congratulate them on the tackling and prevention of the disease - it’s a horrible disease and working in very difficult circumstances. So please listen to the health care workers. They know what they’re talking about. I just want to say keep safe - the world is thinking of you and be safe.'  Future View is based in Sierra Leone and supported in the UK by Purple Field Productions, and has spearheaded efforts to raise awareness of the disease. British troops and medical experts are currently stationed in the country and are helping to build an emergency hospital to treat victims of the disease. |
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