The team of health experts and state officials assigned with preparing Georgia for possible Ebola cases has hashed out more specifics of the plan.
The Ebola Response Team on Wednesday said training is under way at seven treatment hospitals across the state that would care for patients believed to be infected with the deadly virus. Emory Healthcare, which has already treated four infected patients, is among the facilities but the health officials requested the others not be named.
Another 10 hospitals are set to be diagnostic centers where first responders would perform tests to confirm the virus and shuttle patients to the treatment centers. Health officials would work to ensure a third tier of medical facilities are prepared to diagnose symptoms of the virus and isolate patients if needed, the governor’s office said.
The Ebola task force will also require each Georgia college and university to assign a point person to monitor students or faculty who travel to or from West Africa, where more than 10,000 cases of Ebola have been identified. Anyone traveling to the region would be required to notify the liaison of their itinerary, the office said.
The new details come days after Gov. Nathan Deal announced an Ebola response plan that allows health officials to quarantine "high-risk" travelers from areas ravaged by Ebola even if they show no symptoms. It also mandates that medical personnel who treated Ebola patients be "visually monitored" for symptoms rather than be quarantined.
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