Ebola in Texas

[Senator]

They should charge everyone infected with Ebola. Then they wouldn't be so darn careless endangering OUR lives.

Maybe that is a solution...

If they are going to let people that have been in very close contact with Ebola victims travel anywhere they want, there is no sense in keeping anyone in any sort of quarantine.

Just let them take their own temperature, and if they think the temperature may be too high, check themselves in to the nearest hospital. When they are ready.

We are not stopping travel, either internally or externally to hot zone countries. We are not actually quarantining people at a central location. The more this gets out of Dallas, the less it even makes sense to monitor people. The US cannot handle 10,000 cases of a fever. And the more it gets out, who knows who is in contact with what.

It may be best to just let the virus take it's course, and work on a vaccine in the background.

Imagine if it ever takes a hold in a close country like Mexico. The health care is not as good as ours, and it would spread much faster.

 

[Bikerdude]

Don't blame the nurse. She actually contacted the CDC prior to her flight. She reported her fever at 99.5. They told her she was clear to fly since it wasn't a 100.5 fever. Per their 'protocol'. Apparently she called the CDC more than once and got the same answer.

The nurses keep getting tossed under the bus. They are the victims.

Muir


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+1. CDC = FEMA. Caution, works on paper only, do not activate during a real emergency.

 

[imoldernu]

Am watching the congressional hearing on Ebola...
Some of the more aggressive congressmen are suggesting that America should consider shutting down flights from other countries to prevent the spread.

Hmm... considering that there are an estimated 1.5 million flight passengers in a single day this might cause a bit of a problem.

I cannot believe the aggression on the part of some legislators questioning Dr. Frieden. For my money, he's a pretty smart guy. Great self control. If the "gentle lady from Colorado" talked to me like that... wellll.... ummmm....
The gestapo could not have been more overbearing.

Absolutely amazing that we have so many experts on the "panel"... some direct and indirect suggestions...

Stop all flights from Africa until the passenger went through a 21 day isolation period.
Full declarations from each passenger re: their activities during the past 21 days, followed by a lie detector test.
All passengers to wear virus protection while flying.

For people who were coming back from a 36 day vacation, when they could have helped, the congressmen and women were amazingly incisive about that which they had no clue.
Turned my stomach.

Update: Rep Scalise (Louisiana)... answer my questions YES or NO.. did you stop beating your wife?

No politics here... democrats and republicans were both exceedingly rude, and sounded like complete jerks.

 

[Meadbh]

Sometimes less is more. Pierre Rollin, a CDC Ebola expert who is now reviewing the infection control practices in Dallas, has said that dialysis rarely saves Ebola patients and is contraindicated because it is associated with a very high risk of transmission to staff. Nina and Amber and their colleagues were unknowingly taking this risk. It has not escaped me that they are both in their 20s, low on the totem pole and probably afraid to object.

Expert: Hospital did things right - and wrong

 

[HFWR]

No politics here... democrats and republicans were both exceedingly rude, and sounded like complete jerks.

Election year posturing...

 

[Bikerdude]

No politics here... democrats and republicans were both exceedingly rude, and sounded like complete jerks.

I'm shocked, shocked that our representatives would play politics with such an important issue.

 

[Walt34]

I'm shocked, shocked that our representatives would play politics with such an important issue.

They wouldn't do that!

Casablanca Shocked - YouTube

 

[HFWR]

Round up the usual suspects...

 

[meierlde]

Sometimes less is more. Pierre Rollin, a CDC Ebola expert who is now reviewing the infection control practices in Dallas, has said that dialysis rarely saves Ebola patients and is contraindicated because it is associated with a very high risk of transmission to staff. Nina and Amber and their colleagues were unknowingly taking this risk. It has not escaped me that they are both in their 20s, low on the totem pole and probably afraid to object.

Expert: Hospital did things right - and wrong

This does suggest that dialysis and intibation are not indicated for Ebola patients, as if they get that bad they probably won't make it anyway, and the risk to health care professionals is to high for these procedures. Now it does also raise another question, could some of these proceedures be performed by telepresence, i.e. a robot does the actual proceedure guided by a nurse on the other side of a glass wall (with tv monitoring etc). Make the robot so that it can we washed in bleach. It may be that the impetus for this has not happened yet but if we do telesurgery, it seems that it should be possible to do tele versions of these proceedures.

Found the wikipedia article on robotic surgery, it does exist the machines are about $1million each. Here is a link to the article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robotic_surgery
Actually suggests one could look at the robotic nurse also. (Likley is being worked on in Japan)

 

[audreyh1]

Sometimes less is more. Pierre Rollin, a CDC Ebola expert who is now reviewing the infection control practices in Dallas, has said that dialysis rarely saves Ebola patients and is contraindicated because it is associated with a very high risk of transmission to staff. Nina and Amber and their colleagues were unknowingly taking this risk. It has not escaped me that they are both in their 20s, low on the totem pole and probably afraid to object.

Expert: Hospital did things right - and wrong

There was also a period of time where he wasn't isolated, and the nurses were not wearing protective gear beyond regular nurse gear. Then three days with a very sick man when the nurses were not wearing full protective gear. And no "expert" available to oversee and advise?

I notice this official report doesn't jive with the info coming in from behind the scenes via the nurses union. It indicates that they did have all the gear, were using it, and mentions nothing about how long it took to isolate the patient or for nurses to suit up with whatever gear they did have.

 

[Meadbh]

This does suggest that dialysis and intibation are not indicated for Ebola patients, as if they get that bad they probably won't make it anyway, and the risk to health care professionals is to high for these procedures. Now it does also raise another question, could some of these proceedures be performed by telepresence, i.e. a robot does the actual proceedure guided by a nurse on the other side of a glass wall (with tv monitoring etc). Make the robot so that it can we washed in bleach. It may be that the impetus for this has not happened yet but if we do telesurgery, it seems that it should be possible to do tele versions of these proceedures.

Found the wikipedia article on robotic surgery, it does exist the machines are about $1million each. Here is a link to the article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robotic_surgery
Actually suggests one could look at the robotic nurse also. (Likley is being worked on in Japan)

Not at this point in time.

We have here an ethical dilemma. Should a person critically ill with Ebola receive every possible treatment, even though this probably won't work, puts others in danger, and consumes enormous amounts of resources (which will be a gigantic issue if this spreads), OR, should nature be left to take its course? Individual benefits versus the greater good? Risk-benefit ratio of compassionate versus intensive care?


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[NW-Bound]

... We have here an ethical dilemma. Should a person critically I'll with Ebola receive every possible treatment, even though this puts others in danger, and consumes enormous amounts of resources (which will be a gigantic issue if this spreads), OR, should nature be left to take its course? Individual benefits versus the greater good? Risk-benefit ratio of compassionate versus intensive care?

Wow! Engineers debate these economic questions all the time. I wonder if doctors do this too. My guess is that they do, but know not to make public comments about it.

 

[Meadbh]

Wow! Engineers debate these economic questions all the time. I wonder if doctors do this too. My guess is that they do, but know not to make public comments about it.

All the time!

 

[Moemg]

It indicates that they did have all the gear, were using it, and mentions nothing about how long it took to isolate the patient or for nurses to suit up with whatever gear they did have.

IMO They had the protective care all hospitals use for infectious patients (gown,face mask ,booties & eye shields & gloves ) . Unfortanetely ebola requires much more than the standard hospital has available . Hopefully this was a learning lesson and protocols will be in place .My heart goes out to those nurses who are infected .

 

[samclem]

Here we go:

WASHINGTON (AP) — Under pressure to select an Ebola "czar" to lead the U.S. response against the disease, President Barack Obama conceded Thursday it "may be appropriate" to designate a single individual to head the administration effort.

 

[brewer12345]

I think I just heard a black helicopter... Or was that a drone?

 

[samclem]

I think I just heard a black helicopter... Or was that a drone?

It might have been the sound of scapegoat being born (kidded).

 

[timo2]

I think I just heard a black helicopter... Or was that a drone?

Maybe that NBC reporter that broke quarantine to get something to eat should of had a pizza delivered by drone instead!!

Seriously though, we should be worried about the enterovirus 68 outbreak instead of Ebola. Enterovirus 68 has affected more people and is more mysterious than Ebola, and the media has put it on the back burner during the Ebola hysteria. Adults have died and some children have partial paralysis from enterovirus 68. and it has spread over most of north america.

 

[Senator]

Seriously though, we should be worried about the enterovirus 68 outbreak instead of Ebola. Enterovirus 68 has affected more people and is more mysterious than Ebola, and the media has put it on the back burner during the Ebola hysteria. Adults have died and some children have partial paralysis from enterovirus 68. and it has spread over most of north america.

Then we should be using our Military here, not over in some wasteland across the world...

 

[misanman]

Saw this morning that a cruise ship is being denied entry at the port of Belize because one of the passengers is a lab worker at the Texas Hospital. No signs of illness at this time but she and her companion are confined to their stateroom.

 

[Senator]

Saw this morning that a cruise ship is being denied entry at the port of Belize because one of the passengers is a lab worker at the Texas Hospital. No signs of illness at this time but she and her companion are confined to their stateroom.

I saw that too. Let's hope that Ebola never takes hold. There is no way any American is going to be quarantined, unless you put them in a prison.

The USA can handle Ebola, 10 cases at a time. We imposed a travel ban to Israel, but we can't seem to do it for West Africa. We can't even keep possibly infected people at home...

There was even a vomiting person that died on a flight from Nigeria to JFK, but they quickly ruled out Ebola...

 

[audreyh1]

Saw this morning that a cruise ship is being denied entry at the port of Belize because one of the passengers is a lab worker at the Texas Hospital. No signs of illness at this time but she and her companion are confined to their stateroom.

Day 19 and no symptoms, so probably OK. But "self-monitor" doesn't tell people to limit their travel? Then why self-monitor? If these folks are not allowed to work for 21 days, why are they not told don't travel? Makes no sense at all.

 

[eytonxav]

May be this refusal to implement travel bans by the CDC/Administration is a grand plan to reduce the population and number of gov't benefit recipients

This logic that banning commercial flights from West Africa would cause the virus to spread more extensively in Africa seems ludicrous to me.

 

[timo2]

Then we should be using our Military here, not over in some wasteland across the world...

The Posse Comitatus Act might prohibit that, although we are talking about the medical staff and their support staff, right? I'm not sure if that act would apply to medical personnel?

 

[HFWR]

I just wonder what people who may have been exposed, or definitely have been exposed, are thinking when they jump on a plane or cruise ship...

As for the travel ban, I thought I read early on that there aren't many, if any, direct flights to the most affected areas in Africa, so a flight ban would not be effective unless it used visas/passports, thereby stranding most of the "suspects" in Europe somewhere. Bet Europe would love that...

The CDC leadership has exhibited cranial-rectal inversion, but appears to be finally "getting it".

Nancy Snyderman should have known better, and should be quarantined in jail...

The most effective way, in my view, to slow this thing down is to focus on the areas in Africa where it's most prevalent, thus I support using our and other countries' militaries for logistical support.