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Public update on Orange County ebola preparedness

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Facts about Ebola

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 22, 2014

Contact: Deanne Thompson, Orange County Health Care Agency, (714) 834 7649, dthompson@ochca.com

Public Update on Ebola Preparedness

(Santa Ana, CA) — Emergency planning is well underway in Orange County in response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in the West African countries of Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

The risk of contracting Ebola in the United States and in Orange County is very low; there are currently no cases of Ebola in California and no suspect cases. County officials are reviewing communicable disease response plans and conducting drills to exercise those plans.

County officials have developed extensive preparedness procedures in coordination with other local, state and national partners, including the Orange County Health Care Agency, Orange County Sheriff’s Department and its Emergency Management Division, John Wayne Airport,the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Los Angeles County Public Health Lab, which is a CDC-designated site with the capability to test for Ebola. Continue reading→

Ebola has arrived in the United States, in Dallas

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Ebola in the US

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed Tuesday that the first case of Ebola has appeared in the U.S.  A man in Dallas, who is not a health care worker, has tested positive for the virus, the agency says. The man flew to the U.S. from Liberia, arriving on Sept. 20, and wasn’t sick on the flight, and had no symptoms when he arrived, according to NPR.

The person sought medical care at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas after developing symptoms consistent with Ebola. Based on the person’s travel history and symptoms, CDC recommended testing for Ebola. The medical facility isolated the patient and sent specimens for testing at CDC and at a Texas lab participating in CDC’s Laboratory Response Network. CDC and the Texas Health Department reported the laboratory test results to the medical center to inform the patient. Local public health officials have begun identifying close contacts of the person for further daily monitoring for 21 days after exposure, according to the CDC. Continue reading→