Nancy Writebol will be treated in the same isolation unit as Kent Brantly, MD, who is also infected with Ebola virus disease and arrived at Emory University Hospital Saturday, according to a Reuters report. There were no updates available on Dr. Brantly’s condition.
Ms. Writebol was in Liberia working to decontaminate protective suits worn by healthcare workers in an isolation unit in a treatment center, according to the report. She is a longtime missionary and was working with a Christian relief group.
Emory University Hospital has a special isolation unit built in collaboration with the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention, which is nearby in Atlanta. The isolation unit was build to treat patients with serious infectious diseases.
Even though Ms. Writebol and Dr. Brantly are the first and only known cases of patients in the U.S. to be infected with Ebola, the CDC issued recommended infection control practices for other hospitals that may have to treat a patient infected with the Ebola virus.
Through August 1, the Ebola virus has caused a total of 887 deaths since the worst outbreak in history started in March. The disease is transmitted through contact with an infected person’s body fluids and is highly fatal.
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