Confirmation of the first case of Ebola transmission outside of West Africa is a cause for concern. While cases of the virus are expected in Europe and elsewhere, this is on the basis of an individual travelling from Africa having contracted the disease prior to travel. The fact that a nurse at a Spanish hospital was infected by the haemorrhagic fever from a patient she was in contact with raises questions about the implementation of protocols that are in place to protect health workers.
Under the guidance of the World Health Organisation (WHO), countries have protocols and procedures that must be implemented when a case is suspected; it is important that these are followed diligently. These entail the use of personal protective equipment, including specialist suits, designed to prevent healthcare professionals being exposed to an infected patient's body fluids. The Ebola virus may be transmitted when blood, vomit or faecal material from a patient comes in direct contact with a health worker. With proper protection and the strict implementation of care protocols this should not happen.
Health workers at the Madrid hospital have said they are concerned the protective equipment supplied to them is not completely impermeable. If this is indeed the case, then it suggests Spain’s viral haemorrhagic fever preparedness is lacking. Confirmation that the newly infected nurse should have been admitted to hospital on September 30th, when she first complained of symptoms, but was instead told by doctors to stay at home, is a significant breach of protocol. It represents an embarrassing failure to adequately protect public health within an EU country .
Preventing the secondary spread of Ebola involves simple but painstaking adherence to established guidelines. According to WHO there is an extremely low risk of accidental contamination for people exposed to Ebola patients: this risk must be mitigated in the developed world by using its extensive public health infrastructure to full effect.