<p>A patient who recently flew in from West Africa has been diagnosed with the ebola virus at a hospital in Dallas.</p>
<p>You have to wonder if this individual didn’t suspect he was exposed and came to the US knowing he’d get better treatment. And how many others will come to the same conclusion?</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/30/health/ebola-us/index.html?hpt=hp_t2”>http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/30/health/ebola-us/index.html?hpt=hp_t2</a></p>
<p>Wow. I’m surprised and not surprised at the same time. It was only a matter of time. Was he afraid that he would be prevented from traveling to the US?</p>
<p>I don’t have any details. They are going to have a press conference on this at 5:30 EST.</p>
<p>Okay, so the patient arrived in Texas on September 20 from Liberia. On Sept. 24, he/she became symptomatic. This person “sought care” (whatever that means) on the 26th, but didn’t show up at the hospital until September 28. So how many people who came in direct contact with this individual is important. </p>
<p>I find it hard to believe this person wasn’t aware of their risk of exposure before they left for the US. This is the kind of thing which has worried me, rather than getting hysterical over the Atlanta patients who were brought here with full knowledge of their disease.</p>
<p>Why arent passengers coming from those hard hit countries being screened during reentry? This definitely shouldve been happening in September since we knew the disease was spreading. All of this is really scary.</p>
<p>^^^Unless we are going to close our borders to anyone coming from this area, screening isn’t going to prevent what happened here. This person was not symptomatic when he boarded the plane, so if they had screened that flight, he would have passed inspection.</p>
<p>Better to close our borders to anyone coming from the Ebola countries than have the epidemic come here. If Texans, who have never been to West Africa, come down with Ebola and die there will be hell to pay. </p>
<p>I have a problem with whomever assessed this guy on the 24th. Unless he hid his travel history, he should have been isolated at that time, not four days later. Hopefully he stayed home and didn’t interact with many people after he became symptomatic. But if he revealed he had traveled from Liberia days within presenting with symptoms, I would like to know why that wasn’t a red flag to the medical facility where he went to “seek treatment.”</p>
<p>Is Ebola contagious before symptoms appear? I have read claims that it isn’t, and that it is. Either way, this is still very bad.</p>
<p>CDC insists that it is not contagious until symptoms appear.</p>
<p>Something not publicized is that the Americans pulled out of those countries were quarantined. </p>
<p>A quick search says 11 non-stop flights per day Dallas to Seattle. Time to buy 30 days worth of canned food.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/qa.html”>http://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/outbreaks/2014-west-africa/qa.html</a></p>
<p>In this CDC memo, they called the possibility that a sick traveler would arrive in the U. S. ‘remote’. So much for that. </p>
<p>Quarantine is for 21 days after contact, right? </p>
<p>^^^Yes, after direct contact with a symptomatic individual.</p>
<p>He/she was visiting family in the US. </p>
<p>Initially, flights out of those countries were stopped. I wonder why the flight bans were lifted with the disease SPREADING., not abating?</p>
<p>
So he was walking around infectious for 4 days? So not good.</p>
<p>point already made by scholarme</p>
<p>The news (CBS and CNN) are reporting this patient is not a health care worker and was visiting family in Texas. Arrived on flight straight from Liberia on 9/20. Started having symptoms on 9/24 and went to hospital ER (only to be sent home that time) Admitted to Texas Presbyterian on 9/28. The whole time CDC has been saying the US healthcare system can handle Ebola I have been doubtful. As an RN with 20 years experience in the US hospital setting I can tell you our nurses (the backbone of the healthcare system) are over worked, under staffed, and I’m not surprised he was sent home the first time he showed up in an ER. </p>
<p>Anyone know what airline he flew on?</p>