Since the third diagnosis of Ebola in Dallas on Oct. 15, there have been no new confirmed cases but there is still a high level of concern across the nation as there are still 120 people being watched for signs of the disease in North Texas.
A potentially infected lab supervisor from Texas Presbyterian docked in Galveston yesterday from a cruise and tested negative for Ebola according to USA Today.
Meanwhile, the two nurses diagnosed with Ebola remain in fair condition in states of isolation with Amber Joy Vinson at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta and Nina Pham at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD.
Pham’s boyfriend and dog continued to be watched for symptoms as well as the 87 people that were on a flight with Vinson.
The first Ebola patient, Thomas Eric Duncan, 42, passed away Oct. 15 but the virus still lingers due to exposure at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital at Dallas.
Before Duncan’s arrival at the hospital, CNN had reported nurses didn’t have proper protective gear. The nurses were given gloves, booties, etc. but their neck was left exposed, which is what officials say allowed them to contract Ebola.
The CDC has said they are creating new health codes for those dealing with the virus such as new suits that don’t allow skin contact.
Although no other cases of Ebola have been reported the Dallas County Health Director is urging that people stop the rumors.
“We’ve got to tone it down to where we’re reporting on facts and not rumors,” Dallas County Health Director Zachary Thompson told the Dallas Morning News. “There’s enough panic already.”
It’s a sentiment being echoed at the nation’s highest level as President Barack Obama urges Americans not to worry.
“What we’re seeing now is not an outbreak or an epidemic of Ebola in America,” Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio address. “We’re a nation of more than 300 million people. To date, we’ve seen three cases of Ebola diagnosed here.”
