I don't want to panic anyone, but Ebola may be coming to a town near you

[Skyy God]

At least we won't have to slog through another 7-9 Chiefs season....

Now there are American casualties.

Not in Gaza, and not on the ill-fated Malaysian airliner. Now there are American casualties in another war very far away so maybe, goddammit, somebody should start paying more attention to it.

Kent Brantly, 33, an American doctor who has been working in Liberia since October for the North Carolina-based aid organization Samaritan's Purse, is receiving intensive medical treatment after he was infected with Ebola, according to a spokeswoman for the group. Melissa Strickland said Brantly, who is married and has two children, was talking with his doctors and working on his computer while being treated. A second U.S. citizen, Nancy Writebol, also has tested positive for Ebola, Samaritan's Purse said. Writebol is employed by mission group SIM in Liberia and was helping a joint SIM/Samaritan's Purse team treating Ebola patients in Monrovia. Writebol is married with two children, the organization said. "Both of them tonight are in stable condition," Ken Isaacs, Samaritan Purse's vice president of programs and government relations, said Sunday. "But they are not out of the woods yet."

That's some serious Damien-at-Molokai hero stuff right there, still being at your computer while you're being treated for one of the most vicious diseases on the planet. Other medical professionals, alas, are not as lucky.

A Liberian government official said Sunday that one of that country's highest-profile doctors has died in what the World Health Organization (WHO) calls the largest recorded outbreak of the disease...The first Liberian doctor to die of the disease was identified as Samuel Brisbane. He was working as a consultant with the internal medicine unit at the country's largest hospital, the John F. Kennedy Memorial Medical Center in Monrovia. Brisbane, who once was a medical adviser to former Liberian President Charles Taylor, was taken to a treatment center on the outskirts of the capital after falling ill with Ebola and died there, said Tolbert Nyenswah, an assistant health minister. He said another doctor who had been working in Liberia's central Bong County also was being treated for Ebola at the same center where Brisbane died. The situation "is getting more and more scary," Nyenswah said.

Yes, you could say that. The disease is now in both Nigeria and Liberia, and not in the backwater places any more, either, but in the capital cities. The ones with millions of people. And airports.

Over the weekend, health officials in Nigeria raced to stop the spread of Ebola after a man sick with the disease arrived on a flight in Lagos, Africa's largest city with 21 million people. He later died. The man's ability to board an international flight raised new fears that other passengers could carry the disease beyond Africa because of weak passenger inspection and the fact that Ebola's initial symptoms can resemble those of other illnesses. Isaacs said in an interview that "where it gets really scary" is that the disease, which was previously seen only "in very remote, small villages in Africa" is now being contracted by people in the capital cities of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. "Now the disease has been introduced into the big urban areas with millions of people," he said. "In the big cities, people can get on an airplane and fly out." Isaacs does not believe this outbreak his peaked. "I think the worst is yet to come," he said. "I hope I'm wrong."

Meanwhile, the local customs aren't helping a lot, either.

Koroma, 32, a resident of the densely populated Wellington district, had been admitted to an isolation ward while blood samples were tested for the virus, said Sidi Yahya Tunis, a health ministry spokesman. The results came back on Thursday. "The family of the patient stormed the hospital and forcefully removed her and took her away," Tunis said. "We are searching for her."

Jesus save us. I don't mean to sound like a cultural imperialist -- although I seriously doubt that the people in rural Sierra Leone are acting out of what they know about the Tuskegee experiments, or what happened in Guatemala in the 1940's -- but snatching an Ebola patient out of the hospital doesn't sound like a very good way to fight the disease, family networks notwithstanding. (The purloined patient eventually died.) This thing is one airplane flight away from being an international catastrophe, but there is no boom-boom, and without boom-boom, there is no news. However, you know, Americans are getting sick now. Hey, Wolf! Over here?

http://www.esquire.com/blogs/politic...Ebola_Outbreak

[J Diddy]

Originally Posted by BIG_DADDY

No, I don't have the resources or time to research it. My only points were that IMO the CDC has no credibility because of the endless scandals. My other point was that swine flu was never the pandemic it was made out to be. Once that was being confirmed they quit testing. That is all.

You have the internet. There is google.

[J Diddy]

Originally Posted by Chiefspants

I would just like to chime in to say that my ex-girlfriend did, in fact, catch the swine flu.

I'd look into Hog Farmer's whereabouts when she "got" it

[BIG_DADDY]

Originally Posted by KC native

I don't think it's far fetched.

My wife caught chicken pox as an adult because Fort Worth's school district used to allow parents to get religious waivers for vaccinations super easy. Well, after a mini-outbreak of chicken pox in a couple schools the waivers became tougher to get.

My wife was substitute teaching at the time and that's how we learned about how easy the waivers were to obtain. After some substantial bitching about the lost wages and the mini-outbreak, the waiver policy changed within a school year (apparently we weren't the only ones bitching).

Shit pissed me off that assholes were sending their unvaccinated kids to school because they're ****ing morons and didn't believe in vaccines or believed shit like BigDaddy.

Sounds like you should have got her vaccinated.

[BossChief]

How many people actually died of h1n1 worldwide and in the US specifically?

How about Ebola?

[bevischief]

Originally Posted by DaFace

[Donger]

US cautiously optimistic after no new Ebola in 5 days

http://news.yahoo.com/us-cautiously-...172110466.html

Washington (AFP) - With no new Ebola cases in five days, US authorities were cautious but hopeful that the virus has been contained in the United States after a flawed response revealed shortcomings in the system.

The fiancee of a Liberian man who died of Ebola earlier this month in Dallas, Texas was among nearly 50 people who emerged from three weeks of quarantine without any signs of illness from exposure to the virus that has killed more than 4,500 in West Africa since the beginning of this year.

About 100 more people, most of them health care workers, are being tracked in Texas after coming in contact with the first patient diagnosed in the United States in late September.

Still, officials said it was reassuring that no new infections had emerged in recent days.

"We are breathing a little bit easier, but we are still holding our breath," said Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings.

Those who are no longer in danger include a group of health care workers and community members who may have had contact with the Liberian man, Thomas Eric Duncan, between September 24 when he began showing symptoms and September 28 when he was isolated in a Dallas hospital.

"This is a crucial milestone for the city of Dallas and for concerned persons across the United States," said Mark Rupp, an infectious disease specialist at Nebraska Medical Center, which has treated two US Ebola patients after they were infected in Liberia this year.

"I hope this reinforces the message that the public is safe and that Ebola is not very infectious in its early stages."

- Two nurses -

Two nurses in the intensive care unit at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas were infected while caring for Duncan, who died October 8.

Nina Pham's infection was announced October 12, and her colleague Amber Vinson's was three days later.

Ebola is spread though close contact with vomit, blood, diarrhea or other bodily fluids. Most people get sick within eight to 10 days of exposure, and health care workers are particularly at risk.

Word of the nurses' infections sowed panic across the United States, leading to a rash of suspected cases that turned out to be nothing more than common illnesses.

"In the United States, two people have gotten infected with Ebola. Two. Both of them were taking care of a desperately ill patient in a risky situation," said Anthony Fauci, head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, during a forum at Washington's Newseum.

"You have to distinguish the two nurses... from the risk to the general public who aren't anywhere near an Ebola patient, much less a very sick Ebola patient."

Pham is in fair condition at a specialized government hospital near the US capital, and Fauci declined to speculate on whether she would make a full recovery.

"She still is a bit knocked out," Fauci said.

"When you get an infection as serious as Ebola it is very, very draining on you."

Vinson's family said in a statement they "remain intensely prayerful and optimistic about Amber's condition and of the treatment she is currently receiving" at Emory University Healthcare, in Atlanta Georgia, but gave no details on the state of her health.

- Mistakes made -

The Dallas hospital which initially sent Duncan away when he sought care for pain and a fever, apologized Sunday for its management of the case.

"As an institution, we made mistakes in handling this very difficult challenge," Texas Health CEO Barclay Berdan said in a statement.

Jesse Goodman, a doctor and public health expert at Georgetown University, said the United States was learning from the initially flawed response.

"I do think events indicate how important it is to probably be over cautious rather than over confident," Goodman said.

To that end, US health authorities on Monday issued stricter guidelines for protecting health care workers against Ebola.

The new instructions "provide an increased margin of safety," said the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention chief Tom Frieden.

Prior to working with an Ebola patient, medical personnel must be trained and able to demonstrate competency in putting on and taking off personal protective equipment, said Frieden.

The gear should allow no skin exposure and should include gloves, a waterproof gown or coveralls, a respirator, a face shield and a disposable hood.

Meanwhile, fears loomed that the epidemic could intensify in hardest-hit Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, as the death toll continued to climb amid funding shortfalls.

Fauci said the epidemic was far from ending in West Africa, and said all nations need to pour resources into ending the spread of the disease there.

"Right now I don't think we can predict when this epidemic is going to be over. When you look at it, it is still escalating rather than declining."

[BIG_DADDY]

Fearbola is what happens when a bunch chicken shit panty wetting control freaks get access to the internet. Hope the vaccine comes out soon so they can feel safe again.

[Iowanian]

OJ Simpson has killed more people in the United States than Ebola has so far.

[Beef Supreme]

Originally Posted by Iowanian

OJ Simpson has killed more people in the United States than Ebola has so far.

And they can't contain him either.

[DaFace]

Looks like Laz is getting his wish (partially):

http://www.denverpost.com/breakingne...creening-ebola

Homeland Security orders new screening for Ebola
Alicia A. Caldwell Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Everyone coming to the United States from the three West African countries at the center of the Ebola outbreak will now be screened for the deadly disease at one of five airports, the Homeland Security Department said Tuesday.

Earlier this month, Customs and Border Protection officers at New York's Kennedy, Newark Liberty, Washington's Dulles, Chicago's O'Hare and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta airports started screening people arriving from West Africa. The screening includes using no-touch thermometers to determine if travelers have a temperature, one symptom of a possible Ebola infection. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is also working with DHS on the screening.

There are no direct flights to the United States from West Africa. About 94 percent of the roughly 150 people traveling daily from West Africa to the U.S. arrive at the one of the five airports. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson said Tuesday that now everyone traveling from Liberia, Sierra Leone or Guinea will have to land in the U.S. at one of the five airports and then fly on to their destination.

(more at the link)

[loochy]

so where do they put these people that have "fevers"?

[Mr. Laz]

NYC doctor tests positive for virus

By Elaine Ly and Faith Karimi CNN
POSTED: 04:22 AM MDT Oct 24, 2014 UPDATED: 10:27 AM MDT Oct 24, 2014

(CNN) -
A doctor in New York City tests positive for Ebola. The European Union pledges more funds to fight the deadly virus. And a military response team begins training.

A Doctors Without Borders physician who recently returned to New York from Guinea has tested positive for the Ebola virus, becoming the first diagnosed case in the city.

The doctor, identified as Craig Spencer, 33, returned to New York on October 17 after treating Ebola patients in Guinea, and he reportedly developed a fever Thursday morning.

U.S. DEVELOPMENTS

Nina Pham declared free of Ebola

Dallas nurse Nina Pham is free of the Ebola virus, the National Institutes of Health said Friday morning, eight days after she was transferred to an NIH facility in Maryland for treatment. The NIH said it would discuss details about her discharge later Friday.

Pham is one of two nurses who contracted Ebola after treating Liberia citizen Thomas Eric Duncan at a Dallas hospital. Duncan died on October 8.

U.S. considers mandatory quarantine

The United States is considering a mandatory quarantine for all returning health care workers from West Africa, an Obama administration official said Friday. Officials do not believe there is a risk of transmission from someone not exhibiting Ebola-like symptoms, but they want to reassure the public, the administration official said.

Vinson to be transferred from isolation

The other Dallas nurse, Amber Vinson, who is getting treatment for Ebola at Atlanta's Emory University Hospital, is steadily regaining her strength, and her spirits are high, her family said. Doctors can no longer detect the virus in her body, and she'll be transferred from isolation, her mother said.

Bentley the dog doing well

Samples from nurse Pham's dog Bentley tested negative for the virus. More specimens will be collected before the end of a 21-day quarantine.

Go team begins training

A 30-member U.S. military team that could be called on to respond to new cases of Ebola in the United States has started specialized training at Fort Sam Houston in Texas. The weeklong training includes infection control and how to use personal protective gear.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by Mr. Laz

U.S. considers mandatory quarantine

The United States is considering a mandatory quarantine for all returning health care workers from West Africa, an Obama administration official said Friday. Officials do not believe there is a risk of transmission from someone not exhibiting Ebola-like symptoms, but they want to reassure the public, the administration official said.

Even if not mandatory, you'd think that people like the doctor coming back in NYC would make at least an attempt to keep a bit isolated after returning. My guess is it'll all be fine since he wasn't showing any symptoms at the time, but even I find it a bit disconcerting to think of the guy riding the subway like he did.

[vailpass]

I'm told I got ebola from a blow job. I did experience heightened heart rate followed by bodily fluid evacuation but as yet am feeling fine otherwise. Will keep you updated...

[kepp]

Originally Posted by DaFace

Even if not mandatory, you'd think that people like the doctor coming back in NYC would make at least an attempt to keep a bit isolated after returning. My guess is it'll all be fine since he wasn't showing any symptoms at the time, but even I find it a bit disconcerting to think of the guy riding the subway like he did.

He absolutely should have been smarter, but doctors make the worst patients is what I've always heard.

And this administration has been three steps behind common sense since this whole thing began. It makes zero sense to not quarantine those who have knowingly had direct contact with ebola patients.