US is evacuating from Sierra Leone 17 US citizens who were exposed to recent ebola positive patient

[sharon sanders]

Media Statement

For Immediate Release: Friday, March 13, 2015
Contact: CDC Media Relations
404-639-3286


On March 13, an American volunteer healthcare worker in Sierra Leone who tested positive for Ebola virus returned to the U.S. by medevac and was admitted to the NIH Clinical Center for care and treatment. As a result of this case, CDC is conducting an investigation of individuals in Sierra Leone, including several other American citizens, who may have had potential exposure to this index patient or exposures similar to those that resulted in the infection of the index patient. At this time, none of these individuals have tested positive for Ebola. These individuals are volunteers in the Ebola response and are currently being monitored in Sierra Leone. Out of an abundance of caution, CDC and the State Department are developing contingency plans for returning those Americans with potential exposure to the U.S. by non-commercial air transport. Those individuals will voluntarily self-isolate and be under direct active monitoring for the 21-day incubation period.
One of these American citizens had potential exposure to the individual being treated at NIH and is currently being transported via charter to the Atlanta area to be close to Emory University Hospital. The individual has not shown symptoms of Ebola and has not been diagnosed with Ebola. Upon arrival in Atlanta, the individual will voluntarily self-isolate and be under direct active monitoring for the 21-day incubation period

###
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2015/s0313-potential-ebola-exposure.html

Please see:


US - American healthcare worker from Sierra Leone with Ebola virus disease treated at NIH Hospital

[Pathfinder]

Possible Ebola Exposure Sends 10 Aid Workers Back to U.S.

By SHERI FINKMARCH 14, 2015

At least 10 American aid workers who may have come into contact with the Ebola virus in Sierra Leone were preparing on Saturday to be evacuated to the United States, according to a United States Embassy spokeswoman in the Sierra Leonean capital, Freetown....

...so far, none of the other 10 aid workers have developed symptoms, said the embassy spokeswoman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to talk to the news media.

...An investigation is continuing, and more workers will be evacuated if necessary.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/world/africa/possible-ebola-exposure-sends-10-aid-workers-back-to-us.html

[sharon sanders]

From: "Media@cdc.gov (CDC)"
To: MMWR-MEDIA@LISTSERV.CDC.GOV
Subject: CDC Media Statement - Update: CDC investigating potential exposures of American citizens to Ebola in West Africa
Date: Mar 14, 2015 2:51 PM

Media Statement For Immediate Release Saturday, March 14, 2015 Contact: CDC Media Relations (404) 639-3286 Update: CDC investigating potential exposures of American citizens to Ebola in West Africa CDC continues to investigate potential Ebola exposure among individuals in Sierra Leone, including several American citizens, following the identification of an American volunteer healthcare worker in Sierra Leone who tested positive for Ebola virus. That healthcare worker returned to the U.S. by medevac and was admitted to the NIH Clinical Center on March 13th for care and treatment. As a result of CDC's ongoing investigation, CDC and the State Department are facilitating the return of additional American citizens who had potential exposure to the index patient or exposures similar to those that resulted in the infection of the index patient. Currently, none of these individuals have been identified as having Ebola virus disease. Individuals will be transported to the U.S. by non-commercial air transport and will be near the University of Nebraska Medical Center, the National Institutes of Health, or Emory University Hospital. Individuals will follow CDC?s recommended monitoring and movement guidelines, including direct active monitoring and, as appropriate, voluntary self isolation during the 21-day incubation period. In the event an individual shows symptoms, they will be transported following protocol to an Ebola treatment center for evaluation and care. ### U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

[Pathfinder]

At least 10 Americans being flown to U.S. after possible Ebola exposure

Sat Mar 14, 2015 4:11pm EDT

(Reuters) - At least 10 U.S. citizens possibly exposed to the deadly Ebola virus were being flown to the United States from Africa for observation, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Saturday.

The individuals will be transported by non-commercial air transport and will be housed near the University of Nebraska Medical Center, the National Institutes of Health in Maryland, or Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, the CDC said.

It said none of the individuals have been identified as having Ebola.
...
CDC spokesman Thomas Skinner said 10 people who may have been exposed to the unidentified Ebola patient or who had a similar exposure to the virus as the patient were being flown to the United States. But he said the investigation was continuing and there may be more Americans evacuated from Africa.
...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/03/14/us-health-ebola-usa-idUSKBN0MA0UC20150314

[Pathfinder]

Americans Evacuated After Possible Ebola Contact

By SHERI FINKMARCH 14, 2015
...
Another American aid worker, who was showing signs of illness, arrived in the United States on Friday evening, hours after a colleague with Ebola was flown from Sierra Leone to the clinical center of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md. That patient, a clinician who was not identified, tested positive for the virus on Tuesday, and investigators feared that he had exposed others to it. The workers served at an Ebola treatment unit run by the American charity Partners in Health in the Port Loko District in northern Sierra Leone.

The American who arrived Friday evening had developed symptoms last week, but tested negative twice, said several officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity. She is being treated at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta, which has a specialized unit for Ebola patients.

Because the 10 other aid workers are not showing symptoms, they will not be hospitalized, but will instead remain in isolation and be subject to monitoring. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Saturday that the Americans would be taken on three flights to be close to three hospitals capable of treating Ebola patients: the University of Nebraska Medical Center, the National Institutes of Health center in Bethesda or Emory University Hospital.

The American clinician who returned Friday collapsed while volunteering at a government hospital in the Port Loko District. The hospital’s director, Dr. Peter George, said by phone on Saturday...
...
A community health officer, who Dr. George said worked at the Ebola treatment unit as a safety monitor, was determined to have Ebola on Friday. Dr. George said he himself had been asked not to treat patients and to be monitored...

Full text:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/15/wo...o-us.html?_r=0

[Pathfinder]

11 Americans returning from Sierra Leone for Ebola concerns

By Elizabeth Cohen and Steve Almasy, CNN
Updated 10:02 AM ET, Sun March 15, 2015

...
The CDC said none of these individuals returning from Africa has been diagnosed as having Ebola, including one who had "potential exposure to the individual being treated at NIH" and was "transported via charter to the Atlanta area to be close to Emory University Hospital" on Friday. That person is voluntarily self-isolating and will be monitored over the 21-day incubation period, the CDC said.

Four people who had "more exposure than the others" to the patient with Ebolawill isolate themselves in housing on the campus of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, said Nebraska Medicine spokesman Taylor Wilson. They arrived on the medical campus Saturday evening, Wilson said.

The other six are scheduled to fly into Washington on Sunday to go to the NIH, and into Atlanta on Monday to go to Emory, Skinner said.
...
The patient and all but one of the Americans being sent home work for Partners in Health, which provides health care "in settings of poverty," according to a news release from the group.
...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/14/health/cdc-americans-ebola/

[Pathfinder]

Nebraska Medicine
20 hrs ?

Four Patients Exposed To Ebola Coming For Observation Will Stay On Med Center Campus

Omaha, Neb ? Four American health care providers working in Sierra Leone who experienced exposures to the Ebola virus are coming to Nebraska Medicine ? Nebraska Medical Center for observation. These individuals may have come into contact with the patient currently being treated for Ebola at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD. These health care workers will be placed in quarantine on the med center campus in an area segregated from other patients, students and staff members. They will be monitored in a joint effort between Nebraska Medicine and our partners in the Douglas County Health Department, supported by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

?These people have been exposed to the virus but they aren?t sick and aren?t contagious,? said Phil Smith, M.D., medical director of the Biocontainment Unit at Nebraska Medicine. ?In the unlikely instance that one of them does develop symptoms, we would take them to the Biocontainment Unit immediately for evaluation and treatment.

Dr. Smith, also a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, says he understands why some might wonder why these people wouldn?t be taken straight to the Biocontainment Unit. ?The unit needs to be reserved for patients who have been found to have Ebola,? Dr. Smith said.

?There would be no reason for this particular group of people to be there since none of them are displaying symptoms of Ebola.?

People who develop Ebola aren?t contagious until they become symptomatic, and are likely to be most contagious later in the course of the illness. Dr. Smith continued, ?The only method of catching it is to come into contact with the bodily fluids of someone who is infected. We are again ready to help out if called upon during this time of need."

"Nebraska is now a national epicenter for Ebola care and with that comes responsibility,? said Dr. Joseph Acierno, Chief Medical Officer and Director of Public Health for the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. ?It?s not surprising that people with a possible Ebola exposure would want to be near a biocontainment unit undergoing monitoring in a controlled and safe environment.?

?We knew this situation could arise with such a great asset at Nebraska Medicine,? said Dr. Adi Pour, director of the Douglas County Health Department. ?My concern is to keep the community safe and this arrangement will ensure that.?

A total of three patients with Ebola have been treated at Nebraska Medicine. Dr. Richard Sacra was treated and released in September 2014, NBC cameraman Ashoka Mukpo was treated and released in October 2014 and Dr, Martin Salia, who was gravely ill upon arrival, passed away from the virus after less than two days of treatment in November 2014. Two other patients have come to Omaha in 2015 for observation, but neither developed Ebola virus infection.

https://www.facebook.com/NebraskaMed

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4 US aid workers being monitored for Ebola in Nebraska

Posted: Mar 15, 2015 10:37 AM CDT
Updated: Mar 15, 2015 10:37 AM CDT

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) -- Four American aid workers who were exposed to Ebola while working in Sierra Leone are being monitored at a Nebraska hospital.

Nebraska Medical Center spokesman Taylor Wilson says the four individuals arrived in Omaha around 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
...

http://www.kwwl.com/story/28523093/2015/03/15/4-us-aid-workers-being-monitored-for-ebola-in-nebraska

[Pathfinder]

Americans exposed to Ebola return from Africa for monitoring

By Elizabeth Cohen and Steve Almasy, CNN
Updated 10:39 PM ET, Sun March 15, 2015

(CNN)Eight American aid workers who were exposedto Ebola in Sierra Leone have been flown back to the United States where health authorities will watch them closely for signs of the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
...
Three more exposed workers are due to arrive back in the United States on Monday.

Four of the clinicians arrived Saturday to housing on the campus of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha...
...
Another aid worker was flown to Atlanta over the weekend and is being housed near Emory University Hospital, and three more workers are scheduled to arrive in Atlanta on Monday, according to Nancy Nydam, spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Public Health.
...
Three more exposed workers arrived Saturday at the National Institute of Health in Maryland.

These workers "will remain restricted from public places" and have "limited movement, including no mass transportation," according to a statement from Christopher Garrett, a spokesman for the Maryland Department of Health.
...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/14/health/cdc-americans-ebola/

[Pathfinder]

Health Care Worker Transported To Biocontainment Unit for Evaluation

An American health care provider working in West Africa who experienced a possible exposure to the Ebola virus has been transported to Nebraska Medicine’s Biocontainment Unit for further monitoring, and care if necessary. This person is one of four being monitored for Ebola after an exposure to a patient in Sierra Leone who is now being treated at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD.

The individual developed symptoms Sunday evening while being monitored, and out of an abundance of caution, was brought to the unit. “At this point, this person has not tested positive for the Ebola virus,” said Phil Smith, M.D., medical director of the Biocontainment Unit at Nebraska Medicine. “However, because of a change in symptoms, we decided the most prudent course of action was to bring the individual to the Biocontainment Unit, where we can better monitor symptoms and safely perform testing. However, some of the symptoms which prompted the move to the Biocontainment Unit have resolved this morning.”

Dr. Smith emphasized there is no risk to the general public because this individual was separated from other patients and staff. People who develop Ebola aren’t contagious until they become symptomatic, and are likely to be most contagious later in the course of the illness. Contact with bodily fluids is the only way Ebola is transmitted. “Those monitoring this individual took all safety precautions when symptoms developed,” said Dr. Smith. “They all maintained their distance from this person and had no direct contact.”

Earlier this morning, we learned one more individual who was a part of the initial exposure in Sierra Leone will also be coming to the med center campus for monitoring later in the day on Monday.

A total of three patients with Ebola have been treated at Nebraska Medicine. Dr. Richard Sacra was treated and released in September 2014, NBC cameraman Ashoka Mukpo was treated and released in October 2014 and Dr, Martin Salia, who was gravely ill upon arrival, passed away from the virus after less than two days of treatment in November 2014. Two other people came from West Africa for monitoring in early 2015 prior to the current monitoring of the soon-to-be five individuals here currently.

http://www.nebraskamed.com/article/2...for-evaluation

[Pathfinder]

Nebraska Medicine
@NebraskaMed

Fifth individual to be monitored for #Ebola symptoms has arrived at Nebraska Medicine - Nebraska Medical Center.

7:35 PM - 16 Mar 2015

https://twitter.com/NebraskaMed/status/577659437634232320

[Pathfinder]

4 More Aid Workers Flown Back to US for Ebola Monitoring

NEW YORK ? Mar 17, 2015, 1:25 PM ET
By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer
Associated Press

Health officials say four more medical aid workers have arrived back in the United States from West Africa to be monitored for Ebola.

Tuesday's arrivals bring to 16 the number of aid workers who have returned in the last week from Sierra Leone. None of them have been diagnosed with the disease.
...

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/aid-workers-flown-back-us-ebola-monitoring-29700585

[Pathfinder]

Posted on March 18, 2015

Four PIH Clinicians Returned to United States for Monitoring

Identified as Potential Exposures Following Contact with Sierra Leonean Clinician

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jeff Marvin, Media Relations Manager
jmarvin@pih.org

BOSTON (Mar. 18, 2015)?At the request of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, four clinicians working with Partners In Health in Sierra Leone were transported to the United States on Tuesday for active monitoring. These individuals may have been exposed to the Ebola virus in the course of helping a Sierra Leonean colleague, also a clinician, who later tested positive for the disease. These individuals were transferred as a precautionary measure. None have shown symptoms of Ebola.

The Sierra Leonean clinician diagnosed with Ebola is currently receiving care at a specialized treatment facility for health workers run by the British military.

On March 13, a Partners In Health clinician was admitted for care at the National Institutes for Health after testing positive for Ebola in Sierra Leone. Ten PIH clinicians who cared for their ailing colleague have also since returned to the United States for monitoring. None have tested positive for Ebola.
...

http://www.pih.org/blog/four-pih-clinicians-returned-to-united-states-for-monitoring

[Pathfinder]

New clinical trial could help Ebola patients treated in Omaha

UPDATED 5:35 PM CDT Mar 18, 2015

OMAHA, Neb. ?A new clinical trial could help Ebola patients receiving care in the metro. At this point, no patients have been part of the study in Omaha, but five people are under observation after a potential exposure to Ebola in Sierra Leone.
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If patients test positive for Ebola and receives care in the biocontainment unit at Nebraska Medicine, they can enroll in the trial and will only receive the experimental drug ZMapp.
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As part of the study, there will be two groups. Group A will receive the experimental drug and Group B will not.

"If we decide later that ZMapp does appear to be effective, then we would no longer just compare that to standard of care, which is fluid, hydration, electrolytes, things like that," Kratochvil said.
...

http://www.ketv.com/news/new-clinical-trial-could-help-potential-ebola-patients-in-metro/31870000

[Pathfinder]

2 More Aid Workers Flown Back to US for Ebola Monitoring

NEW YORK ? Mar 18, 2015, 9:36 PM ET

By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer
Associated Press

Health officials say two more American aid workers arrived in the United States on Wednesday night to be monitored for Ebola.

The two bring to 17 the number of Americans flown back from West Africa's Sierra Leone since Friday for monitoring. None have tested positive.
...

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/aid-workers-flown-back-us-ebola-monitoring-29741292

[Pathfinder]

Nebraska Medicine @NebraskaMed ? 1h 1 hour ago

Person was symptom-free and all tests for Ebola were negative.

Nebraska Medicine @NebraskaMed ? 1h 1 hour ago

UPDATE: The person being monitored in Biocontainment Unit leaves unit and returns to active monitoring with 4 other people exposed to Ebola.

https://twitter.com/NebraskaMed/with_replies