Ebola

Here in Spokane County, Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD) infectious disease and emergency preparedness specialists closely monitor the ongoing response to Ebola in Africa – just as they do for any other outbreak of illness or disease.

Here are some of the activities that remain ongoing, regardless of whether an Ebola outbreak is occurring or not:

• SRHD is in routine contact with health officials at Washington State Department of Health, who in turn partner with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other global health organizations to ensure the latest and most up-to-date information about the Ebola is available to U.S. health agencies.
• SRHD communicates with doctors, EMS providers, local health, hospitals and other healthcare facilities in Spokane County to share the latest Ebola information.
• SRHD is committed to working with local healthcare partners to prepare systems of care to effectively respond in the extremely unlikely event that a person with symptoms of Ebola virus arrives here.

May 31, 2018

On May 8, 2018, the World Health Organization (WHO) was notified of an Ebola Virus Disease outbreak in the Bikoro Health Zone in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is the ninth Ebola outbreak in the DRC over the last four decades, with the most recent occurring in May 2017. Up to date case counts and outbreak information are available on the WHO Ebola Situation Reports for the Democratic Republic of Congo website.

• Notifiable Conditions Reporting
• Infection Prevention and Control for Hospitalized Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola in U.S. Hospitals
• Interim Guidance for U.S. Hospital Preparedness for Patients Under Investigation (PUIs) or with Confirmed Ebola Virus Disease (EVD): A Framework for a Tiered Approach
• Detailed EMS Checklist for Ebola Preparedness
• Checklist for Health Care Coalitions for Ebola Preparedness
• Environmental Infection Control in Hospitals for Ebola Virus – Interim Guidance
• Safe Handling of Human Remains of Ebola Patients in U. S. Hospitals and Mortuaries
• Medical Waste Management

• Evaluating and Monitoring for Ebola Virus Disease
• Updated recommendations for triaging and evaluating patients with possible Ebola virus disease
• Frequently Asked Questions on Screening for Ebola Virus Disease for Providers, Healthcare Facilities and Health Departments
• Algorithm - Hospital Evaluation and Management of Patients with Possible Ebola Virus Disease - [PDF - 1 page]
• Algorithm - Ambulatory Care Evaluation of Patients with Possible Ebola Virus Disease - [PDF - 1 page]
• CDC Algorithm - Evaluating Returned Travelers for Ebola, U.S. [PDF - 1 page]
• Checklist for Patients Being Evaluated for Ebola in the U.S. [PDF - 1 page]

• Ebola Virus Testing at Washington State Public Health Laboratories
• Specimen Collection, Transport, Testing, and Submission for Persons Under Investigation for Ebola in the U.S.
• Factsheet - Visual format [PDF - 1 page]
• Packaging and Shipping Clinical Specimens Diagram
• Frequently Asked Questions for U.S. Clinical Laboratories
• Compliance with Select Agent Regulations for Laboratories Handling Patient Specimens that are Known or Suspected to Contain Ebola Virus

• Procedures for Personal Protective Equipment
• Tools for Protecting Healthcare Personnel
• Ebola Medical Waste Management

• Case Definition for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD)

• Ebola virus disease Information for Clinicians in U.S. Healthcare Settings
• Safe Management of Patients with Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in U.S. Hospitals

• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response - Ebola Information for Professionals
• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Information for Health Care Providers