A letter was released to patients, families and visitors from medical center leadership Tuesday concerning the med center’s treatment of a patient with Ebola.
The letter, from Harris Frankel, M.D., chief medical officer, and Rosanna Morris, chief operatig offier and chief nursing officer for the clinical enterprise, read:
As you may have heard, an American doctor serving on a medical mission in Liberia tested positive for the Ebola virus and was recently transported back to the United States for treatment. At the request of the U.S. State Department, we are currently treating this patient here at The Nebraska Medical Center’s Biocontainment Patient Care Unit.
We want to personally assure you that this patient’s presence here poses no risk to you or your loved ones. The biocontainment unit here is a highly secure group of special hospital rooms which is locked and sealed. It is staffed by experts who’ve been highly trained to care for patients exposed to infectious diseases.
The unique capabilities of our experts here and our biocontainment unit make our center the best place to safely treat this patient and keep the disease from spreading. We are taking these measures with an abundance of caution, caring for this patient in an area which exceeds all safety requirements.
Here are some important facts about Ebola:
- It cannot be spread through the air.
- It is only contagious to those who come in direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.
- Infection control procedures in modern American medical centers can safely prevent its spread
- The biocontainment unit is in a separate part of the hospital – it has its own staff, supplies and air handling system.
We have spent our entire careers in patient care and want you to know we have all the confidence in the world in our staff and their ability to deal with this safely. If you have any lingering questions or concerns, please share them with your doctor, nurse or any care provider. Everyone here at the medical center is fully committed to providing you the extraordinary care you deserve and will continue to do so.