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Ebola fears in Cairns for woman who treated patients in Sierra Leone Ebola fears in Cairns for woman who treated patients in Sierra Leone
(about 1 hour later)
A woman has undergone tests for Ebola in a Cairns hospital isolation unit. A woman in far north Queensland is undergoing tests in an isolation unit to see if she is suffering from Australia’s first case of Ebola.
The 57-year-old woman who recently returned from Sierra Leone was under observation, Queensland’s chief health officer, Jeanette Young, confirmed. The 57-year-old woman was under observation in Cairns hospital, Queensland’s chief health officer, Jeanette Young, confirmed.
She had been in the west African country looking after Ebola patients for a month and returned to Australia on Tuesday, Young said. She was admitted to hospital with a “low-grade” fever on Thursday. The woman was treating Ebola patients in Sierra Leone for a month and returned to Australia on Tuesday. She was kept in home isolation and was admitted to hospital with a low grade fever on Thursday.
The woman, a volunteer nurse with the Red Cross, had done “everything appropriately”. She had no symptoms when she returned to the country, developing the fever only on Thursday morning. Young emphasised there was zero risk to the Cairns community of infection as the woman, a nurse with the Red Cross, had followed protocols when returning to Australia.
Young emphasised there was no risk of infection for the public, as the woman had followed the correct protocols. “She has not been out in the community in Cairns. She has been at home, isolated in her own home, testing herself,” she said.
“She has not been out in the community in Cairns, she has been at home, isolated in her own home, testing herself,” she said, Young said Ebola was contracted through contact with excretions such as blood, vomiting and diarrhea, and, since the woman had exhibited none of those symptoms, there was no risk she had infected anyone else, if she does have Ebola.
Young said Ebola was contracted through contact with excretions such as blood, vomiting and diarrhea, and since the woman had exhibited none of those symptoms there was no risk she had infected anyone else, if she did have Ebola. Blood was taken from the woman at Cairns hospital on Thursday afternoon and flown to Brisbane to be tested. The results will be known either late on Thursday night or in the early hours of Friday morning.
Blood was taken from the woman on Thursday afternoon and flown to Brisbane for testing. The results would be known late on Thursday or in the early hours of Friday morning. Young paid tribute to woman’s courage in travelling to Sierra Leone to treat Ebola patients. “I think she’s an amazing lady to go to Africa and provide that service,” Young said.
“I think she’s an amazing lady to go to Africa and provide that service,” Young said of the woman. When asked how likely it was the woman did have the virus, Young responded: “I am treating it as if it was, because I don’t know how likely it is. Because she has been in Sierra Leone looking after people sick with Ebola, there is potential there that’s why we are treating it seriously.”
When asked how likely it was that the woman had the virus, Young said: “I am treating it as if it was, because I don’t know how likely it is. Because she has been in Sierra Leone looking after people sick with Ebola, there is potential there – that’s why we are treating it seriously.” Queensland Health is also monitoring a doctor in home isolation in south Brisbane who has returned from treating Ebola patients overseas.
Queensland health is also monitoring a doctor in home isolation in south Brisbane who has returned from treating Ebola patients overseas. Young said there were “absolutely no concerns” for any passengers who were on the same plane as the woman as she returned to Australia because she was had no symptoms when she flew.
Young said there was “absolutely no concerns” for any passengers who were on the same plane as the woman as she returned to Australia because she had no symptoms when she flew.
“Ebola is very difficult to transmit, it’s not like flu,” she said.“Ebola is very difficult to transmit, it’s not like flu,” she said.
Several Red Cross workers have travelled from Australia to West Africa in the past few months to work with Ebola patients.
The head of the Red Cross international program, Peter Walton, told the ABC last month the Red Cross was reaching more than 10m people in West Africa with information and education about Ebola.
“Since people first became sick with Ebola, over 1,500 trained Red Cross volunteers have been working around the clock to help people understand how they can protect themselves and prevent further spread of the disease,” he said.
The US secretary of state, John Kerry, on Wednesday called on other countries to pull their weight in the battle to halt Ebola.
“Smaller countries have stepped up to the plate – some quite remarkably,” he said.
“Some smaller countries are contributing way above their per capita population. But the fact is more countries can and must step up to make their contributions felt.”
Kerry referred to US State Department figures showing Australia had contributed US$7.5m ($8.5m) to the effort, more than Germany (US$3.2m) or Japan (US$3m), but much less than the Netherlands (US$21m) or Canada (US$31.9m). Australia has subsequently announced a further contribution of $10m.
The foreign minister, Julie Bishop, has cited the difficulty of repatriating health workers safely as a reason for not sending them to west Africa.
On Thursday, Abbott maintained there was no need to send Australian health officials to the region to help contain the epidemic.
“As I understand things the public health systems in some of the west African countries are all but overwhelmed and there’s really not much point deploying Australian personnel, over and above those that are already there with NGOs, into a situation without a clear plan and that’s what we need.”
Kerry said the figures showed “the very real need for more countries to move resources of specific kinds”.
“It is not just a question of sending people, though it is vital to send people. But we need Ebola treatment units. We need healthcare workers. We need medevac capacity. We need mobile laboratories and staff.”
The shadow foreign minister, Tanya Plibersek, and the opposition health spokeswoman, Catherine King, were calling last week for Australia to send people to West Africa to help treat patients and provide expertise.
Australian quarantine officers have held six people suspected of having Ebola at airports after interviewing 651 travellers between August and 1 October as part of Australia’s efforts to keep the disease out of the country.Australian quarantine officers have held six people suspected of having Ebola at airports after interviewing 651 travellers between August and 1 October as part of Australia’s efforts to keep the disease out of the country.
Last month Queensland health authorities triggered contagious diseases protocols over a suspected Ebola case on the Gold Coast, but the man in question was cleared of having the virus.