Posted on 08/24/2014 4:39:32 PM PDT by DeaconBenjamin
A healthcare worker who is the first Briton confirmed to have tested positive for the Ebola virus was flown to London on Sunday for treatment after being evacuated from Sierra Leone on an RAF plane.
The man was expected to be taken to the Royal Free hospital in Hampstead, London, which has an isolation unit where he can be treated.
The man, who lives in Sierra Leone, had been volunteering at an Ebola clinic in the Kenema district in the east of the country.
The decision to fly the British man home was taken on Saturday at a meeting between the medical director of the NHS, Sir Bruce Keogh, the health secretary, Jeremy Hunt, and the foreign secretary, Philip Hammond. A medical assessment was carried out to see whether the patient was fit to fly.
"The patient is not currently seriously unwell and is being medically evacuated in a specially equipped C-17 Royal Air Force plane to RAF Northolt in the UK. Upon arrival in the UK, the patient will be transported to an isolation unit at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust," a statement from the Department of Health said on Sunday. Prof John Watson, the deputy chief medical officer for England, said the risk to the public remained low. "We have robust, well-developed and well-tested NHS systems for managing unusual infectious diseases when they arise, supported by a wide range of experts," he said.
"UK hospitals have a proven record of dealing with imported infectious diseases and this patient will be isolated and will receive the best care possible."
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
I’m not sure I follow, he’s “not seriously unwell”
so they are bringing him there for treatment???
This whole thing makes me very uneasy.
If they receive good care early the chances of recovery are much better.
you missed one :)
Bring Out Your Dead
Post to me or FReep mail to be on/off the Bring Out Your Dead ping list.
The purpose of the Bring Out Your Dead ping list (formerly the Ebola ping list) is very early warning of emerging pandemics, as such it has a high false positive rate.
So far the false positive rate is 100%.
At some point we may well have a high mortality pandemic, and likely as not the Bring Out Your Dead threads will miss the beginning entirely.
*sigh* Such is life, and death...
A link to this thread has been posted on the Ebola Surveillance Thread
Thanks for the ping!
Youre Welcome, Alamo-Girl!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.