“We were asked by the American side for help with the fact that this doctor is symptom-free,” said the Minister of CT. According to him, the patient is an American doctor who worked in Uganda and was in contact with the infected person. Vojtěch decided to accept after consultation with the government, the Ministry of Health told the ČTK agency.
Health professionals do not underestimate anything. “The Czech Republic is preparing to receive a US citizen suspected of being infected with the Ebola virus. The patient will be transferred to the Bulovka University Hospital in a special isolation transport box under clearly defined security and anti-epidemic measures. The case does not pose a risk to the public in the Czech Republic, the procedures for similar situations are clearly set,” the department said on the X network.
“Bulovka University Hospital is one of the specialized workplaces for highly dangerous infections. It has prepared specialized isolation rooms, including rooms with a negative pressure regime, a biobox for the safe transport of patients, protective technologies and an experienced and trained medical team that follows strict international protocols when caring for patients with suspected infectious diseases, such as Ebola, for example,” the statement reads.
“We are currently working out the timeline for the entire transfer,” said Naďa Chattová, spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health. The arrival of the patient is expected on Wednesday in the evening.
Earlier media reports stated that Germany will also take care of six more people who came into contact with people infected with Ebola.
Satish Pillai, who is in charge of steps against the spread of Ebola at the CDC, told reporters on Tuesday that six high-risk contacts are preparing to travel to Europe. The CDC subsequently informed about the transfer of one such person to the Czech Republic.
Doctor Craig Spencer, an Ebola survivor, commented on the information on social networks. “The CDC has just announced that none of the people who came into contact with those infected during the Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo will return to the US,” he said on the X network.
“These seven people will be sent to Germany and… to the Czech Republic,” he wrote later, saying that being an American would make him angry.
The German Ministry of Health announced on Tuesday afternoon that the Berlin Charité clinic will take over the care of the infected American, who will be placed in a special isolation ward. It is equipped with separate air conditioning and its own wastewater treatment plant. This highly specialized department for extremely contagious diseases states that it is able to handle even situations with unclear biological, chemical or radiological contamination.
An American who had lived in Africa shortly before and who was suspected of being infected with Ebola was treated in the specialized center of the Na Bulovce hospital in Prague a year ago. At that time, hygienists sent 26 people to preventive quarantine due to contacts with him. In the end, he did not have the infection. The tests were carried out by the Koch Institute in Berlin.
