Non-U.S. Healthcare Settings
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International Infection Control and Healthcare Workers
Ebola infections among healthcare workers have occurred in almost every outbreak since the discovery of the Ebola virus<sup>1</sup>. Ebola infections among healthcare providers can have devastating effects on healthcare systems and on the communities they serve. Such infections have led to closures of health facilities, distrust in the healthcare system, and direct and indirect loss of the healthcare work force.
These effects undermine efforts to control the epidemic and can eventually lead to a collapse of the basic healthcare infrastructure needed to treat more common ailments, like malaria. Improving infection control and protecting healthcare providers from Ebola infection is critical to providing reliable basic health care and stopping the epidemic.
Infection Control in Community and Healthcare Settings
CDC’s Dr. Mary Choi directs a new flow to separate suspect cases of Ebola from non-cases in a hospital waiting room in Guinea.
In the wake of increasing numbers of Ebola cases in the 2014 West Africa outbreak, there is a critical need to support international infection control efforts. International infection control aims to prevent the spread of Ebola and other dangerous infections from person to person.
Both during the current outbreak and in everyday practice, infection control must be prioritized in community and healthcare settings. Infection control is a key strategy in stopping the Ebola epidemic, and also in preventing future outbreaks of disease.
The West Africa outbreak focuses attention on three countries: Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, but all countries need to strive toward achieving a basic level of infection control.
Community settings
Infection control measures in community settings include:
Infection control measures in healthcare settings include:
2014 West Africa Outbreak
Select Publications and Alerts
African Healthcare Settings
References
http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/non-us-healthcare-settings.html
http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/non-us-healthcare-settings.html# http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/non-us-healthcare-settings.html#
Share International Infection Control and Healthcare Workers
Ebola infections among healthcare workers have occurred in almost every outbreak since the discovery of the Ebola virus<sup>1</sup>. Ebola infections among healthcare providers can have devastating effects on healthcare systems and on the communities they serve. Such infections have led to closures of health facilities, distrust in the healthcare system, and direct and indirect loss of the healthcare work force.
These effects undermine efforts to control the epidemic and can eventually lead to a collapse of the basic healthcare infrastructure needed to treat more common ailments, like malaria. Improving infection control and protecting healthcare providers from Ebola infection is critical to providing reliable basic health care and stopping the epidemic.
Infection Control in Community and Healthcare Settings
In the wake of increasing numbers of Ebola cases in the 2014 West Africa outbreak, there is a critical need to support international infection control efforts. International infection control aims to prevent the spread of Ebola and other dangerous infections from person to person.
Both during the current outbreak and in everyday practice, infection control must be prioritized in community and healthcare settings. Infection control is a key strategy in stopping the Ebola epidemic, and also in preventing future outbreaks of disease.
The West Africa outbreak focuses attention on three countries: Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, but all countries need to strive toward achieving a basic level of infection control.
Community settings
Infection control measures in community settings include:
- Social distancing (avoiding physical contact with a person known or suspected to have Ebola)
- Frequent hand washing
- Providing care for ill family members safely
- Safe transport of Ebola patients or suspected patients
- Safe burial practices
Infection control measures in healthcare settings include:
- Quickly identifying and isolating patients with known or suspected Ebola
- Screening patients when they first enter the healthcare system
- Laying out facilities to make it easier to screen and diagnose suspected cases
- Implementing strict policies for visitation
- Closely monitoring healthcare workers for fever or other symptoms
- Implementing effective healthcare worker sickness notification and leave policies
- Protecting patients and healthcare workers
- Good hand hygiene practices
- Use of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Following safe injection practices and drawing blood safely
- Cleaning up safely
- Performing environmental cleaning and disinfection
- Managing waste safely and appropriately
- Managing patients safely and compassionately
- Establishing and following protocols for notifying authorities about suspected Ebola patients
- Safe initial management of suspected Ebola cases while awaiting patient transport to another setting
- Communicating with patients to effectively and compassionately educate them about their suspected illness and what to expect during their treatment process
2014 West Africa Outbreak
- WHO: Interim Infection Prevention and Control Guidance for Care of Patients with Suspected or Confirmed Filovirus Haemorrhagic Fever in Health-Care Settings, with Focus on Ebola
- Infection Prevention and Control for Hospitalized Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola in U.S. Hospitals
- Environmental Infection Control in Hospitals for Ebola Virus
Select Publications and Alerts
- MMWR: Estimating the Future Number of Cases in the Ebola Epidemic - Liberia and Sierra Leone, 2014-2015 - September 23, 2014
- MMWR: Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak — Nigeria, July–September 2014
- MMWR: Ebola Viral Disease Outbreak — West Africa, 2014
- JAMA: The Ebola Epidemic: A Global Health Emergency
African Healthcare Settings
- Infection Control for Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers in the African Health Care Setting
- Infection Control Posters
Includes French & Portuguese versions - Recommendations for Breastfeeding
References
- Fisher, WA, NA Hynes, and Perl Perl. "Protecting Health Care Workers From Ebola: Personal Protective Equipment Is Critical but Is Not Enough." Ann Intern Med (2014): [Epub ahead of print]
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