Americans with Ebola given secret drug..

[Lynn49]

New things are scary...they're threatening...easily misunderstood, attacked, not accepted.
So true, Tara...every thought, viewpoint can contribute to a resolution.

[SharonMe]

The first 10 days that a person is infected with ebola levels of the virus are so low that they won't show up on any test. By the end of 20 days, the body is loaded with billions of virus particles.

It gets more dangerous to deal with patients as time goes on...and judging by the infection timeline (8 and 10 days after Duncan's death; Duncan himself started to show symptoms 9-10 days after his contact) I bet the infection occurred near the end period of Duncan's care, when things were messiest and most dangerous (and by then they should have figured out a protocol too, no?)

The thing is there is no standardized treatment. Duncan's family is still being quarantined under armed guards and those who treated him are free to travel even after one nurse tested positive. The second nurse called the CDC after she had a low grade fever and was told it was ok to get on the plane. Now the CDC is saying she should not have done so and calls are made to everyone who boarded the flight. Mixed messages.

[TaraF]

The thing is there is no standardized treatment. Duncan's family is still being quarantined under armed guards and those who treated him are free to travel even after one nurse tested positive. The second nurse called the CDC after she had a low grade fever and was told it was ok to get on the plane. Now the CDC is saying she should not have done so and calls are made to everyone who boarded the flight. Mixed messages.

This is what I think people are talking about and what they are frustrated with when they say the CDC and the Government don't know what they are dealing with. They are just making up the "rules" as they go along and hoping for the best. They are throwing mud at the walls and hoping something sticks. They are trying to be professional and hold up the appearance that they LOOK like they know what they are doing but really I don't think they do. That's the scary part. And that's what they don't want people to know because they don't want mass panic to ensue.

But the reality is that Ebola IS new. Sure it isn't a new disease but it's always been "someone elses problem". And that highlights another issue we have as humanity, because what is someone elses problem will always eventually become ours.

[lecale]

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[Lynn49]

This is what I think people are talking about and what they are frustrated with when they say the CDC and the Government don't know what they are dealing with. They are just making up the "rules" as they go along and hoping for the best. They are throwing mud at the walls and hoping something sticks. They are trying to be professional and hold up the appearance that they LOOK like they know what they are doing but really I don't think they do. That's the scary part. And that's what they don't want people to know because they don't want mass panic to ensue.

But the reality is that Ebola IS new. Sure it isn't a new disease but it's always been "someone elses problem". And that highlights another issue we have as humanity, because what is someone elses problem will always eventually become ours.

Wise far beyond your years, Cuocake...

I'm surprised it's taken this long for Ebola to cross the Atlantic. Wouldn't you think that once it surfaced in North America someone would have placed a call to Sierra Leone to ask:" Sooooo, we have Ebola here now. You've been successfully dealing with it for years. What are your recommendations for patient care and protection of those who will be working with them? "
Wouldn't that have been your first call as a first-line responder?!

[Patty Smyth]

Actually Nigeria is the country who best deals with it over there. They know how to contain it. It's new to the other countries like Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone.

[SharonMe]

Yes, Nigeria is close to be decleared ebola free if no new cases by Oct 20 which would be 42 days without any new cases. They also were brought the virus through the travels of someone from Liberia.
Ebola may not be airborne but we sure are.
There's an interesting article of how this new cluster of ebola got started in Meliandou, nestled in the Forest Region of southern Guinea. A little 2 year old was its first victim.
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/2...ic-containment

[Natalka]

Nurse in Dallas moved to Maryland

https://ca.news.yahoo.com/1st-us-nur...162037334.html

[Patty Smyth]

Do you guys think this is getting too much coverage? I was just commenting to someone that CNN should rename itself The Ebola Channel.

I watched some of the hearings yesterday when they were grilling the CDC and NIH people and it seemed more like a political play rather than a hearing.

[TaraF]

That's a tough call Patty. On one hand I'd like to say yes, but on the other I'd say no. It's obviously a serious virus and if our Government, if the US Government is planning to send thousands of troops to different locations in Africa to help in the immediate, and they are going to come back to our soil, they better be prepared. Because who knows if they'll accidentally bring something back with them, and if they do and something happens again like what happened in Dallas, then what? It's an unfortunate real threat at the moment. It sucks. But it's real. Remember though that the job of the media is to babble on so they just kind of regurgitate the news of the day anyways. lol


Ebola Fears Reach Pentagon After Woman Became Ill On Shuttle Bus

A huge Pentagon parking lot remains closed and cordoned off, and a bus full of Marines is temporarily quarantined as medical personnel attempt to determine why a woman who boarded the bus suddenly became ill. The woman, a private contractor for the Pentagon, told first responders she was recently in West Africa.

[SharonMe]

Should you think there's not enough coverage. More is planned here in Canada on Tuesday.
CBC News is dedicating a special day of coverage to the Ebola crisis on Tuesday. On radio, television and online, we'll explore the facts behind Ebola and answer questions. Be part of the conversation Tuesday by using #ebolafacts on social media or by joining our live chat on CBCNews.ca starting at 8 p.m. ET

Some relief for passengers on a Carnival cruiseline
A Dallas hospital lab worker who spent much of a cruise holiday in isolation after possible exposure to Ebola, has tested negative for the disease, Carnival Cruise Lines said on Sunday.
I hope she gets a refund on that trip.

President Obama appoints an "ebola czar" Ron Klain.
Ron is not an expert in ebola but apparently neither is the CDC nor anyone in North America. He is however great at predicting possible questions by the press and handling political crisis. Obama has gotten some criticism for this choice but when you have the CDC admitting they mishandles the first ebola case in North America and WHO admitting botching their response to the outbreak in Africa, I think his choices as far as leaders in the health field were limited.

Tonight is the last night of quarantine for Duncan's family.
The first group of people exposed to Thomas Eric Duncan, the first person to die from Ebola in the United States, will no longer be considered at risk for the Ebola virus at 12 a.m. Monday.

[TaraF]

You know what I find interesting? Stephen Harper. Okay, this isn't a pot shot lol Really it isn't. To make such a statement as "Ebola could reach our shores very quickly" is kind of a fear mongering statement. I actually think it was quite a irresponsible statement for the head of a Country to make. I understand that Obama appointed an "Ebola Czar" and is actually training a Military team to be able to be dispatched within hours if an outbreak were to occur, that's actually not a bad idea. To be prepared is never a bad idea, but wording to the public is ALWAYS something that has to be chosen carefully. And I think Harper's choice of words in the midst of unfortunate public panic of many was very poor.

AND it also doesn't help the situation of why we have so many people not trusting the Government(s) and Health Agency(s) when they say things like "Ebola is hard to catch".

[TaraF]

Oh, and while I'm on the subject of Government and Ebola I must vent about Ontario. Kathleen Wynne and the Ontario Liberal Government designated 10 Ontario hospitals as places that would treat Ebola patients incase there were an outbreak. This is good. Again, being prepared is always a good thing. These hospitals are confident they are equipped to handle Ebola patients but will be undergoing additional training. Those hospitals include:

• Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario
• Hamilton Health Sciences
• Health Sciences North
• Hospital for Sick Children
• Kingston General Hospital
• London Health Sciences Centre
• The Ottawa Hospital
• St. Michael’s Hospital
• Sunnybrook Hospital
• University Health Network’s Toronto Western Hospital

Included in Hamilton Health Sciences would be Hamilton General Hospital, McMaster Medical Centre, Juravinski Hospital.

What I didn't like was that they added Juravinski Hospital into the mix of hospitals in Hamilton. Having been a patient at the Lodge and knowing that cancer patients get shoved over to Juravinski Hospital for any issues that arise, that ER (which is TINY) was full up of mostly cancer patients. So not only in a potential outbreak would they transfer potential Ebola patients there where cancer patients frequent you'll also have every person who thinks they have Ebola in that vicinity clogging that ER because they know it's a designated hospital that can care for Ebola patients. I think it is just putting cancer patients with crappy immune systems at further risk. Why they added Juravinski Hospital is beyond me.

And:

]Starting on Monday October 20, 2014, the Public Health Ontario Laboratory in Toronto will have the capability to conduct Ebola testing.Furthermore, the province will create an Advisory Table on Ebola Preparedness to address the needs of health care workers and any ongoing concerns they may have.
A provincial ministerial “Ebola Command Table” will also be assembled to provide “updates to the province’s procedures for containing and treating infectious disease.

It sounds like Ontario at least has a plan. Good for them. Other than designating a hospital connected to a Cancer Centre a place for Ebola patients to be cared for. lol

[princessjen]

Attachment 259212

Found this movie at Freshco for $4.99. (Outbreak) So I decided to up it up!

[SharonMe]

Oh, and while I'm on the subject of Government and Ebola I must vent about Ontario. Kathleen Wynne and the Ontario Liberal Government designated 10 Ontario hospitals as places that would treat Ebola patients incase there were an outbreak. This is good. Again, being prepared is always a good thing. These hospitals are confident they are equipped to handle Ebola patients but will be undergoing additional training.

Hopefully the hospital designated as one that would treat ebola will be best for everyone at that hospital including the heroic health care workers in direct contact, treating and taking care of them daily. They should be more informed and have a system in place to confine and reduce the potential spread quickly. They should have the PPE and a room that's specially equipped to treat someone with ebola. Hopefully they would have a dedicated team practicing donning and removing PPE which is believed to when the virus spreads and would use a buddy system and only care for this patient.

The hospital in Dallas was not ready and paid a high price but it's made us all aware how untrained what was considered was one of the best health care systems actually was. We underestimated ebola and I think that's what Harper is afraid will happen if we let down our guard.

It appears Africa with it's poor sanitation and poverty is doing a better job.
The African country of Senegal has effectively ended the transmission of Ebola within its borders. They had one case and handled it by banning flights from Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The one patient with ebola recovered.