Drawing upon the experience of Emory Healthcare in treating Ebola patients, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity program.
As hospitals in the United States begin to treat Ebola patients, a wide variety of processes including biological waste management, shipping processes, and lab testing are coming under scrutiny. At Emory, patients’ liquid wastes were disinfected with bleach or quaternary disinfecting detergents for more than 5 minutes prior to flushing or disposal. Linens and disposable material exposed to patients were handled as regulated medical waste and placed in leakproof containers. Additionally, Emory’s contractor called for a certification that materials were Ebola-free before transporting the waste to its incinerator.
CDC/Cynthia Goldsmith
Because sending a possible Ebola-contaminated specimen to the main hospital laboratory could cause that lab to be shut down for hours to address decontamination, Emory put in place a small point-of-care testing lab dedicated solely to specimens related to patients suspected of having Ebola. The dedicated lab included a chemistry analyzer, hematology analyzer, blood-gas analyzer, automated urinalysis analyzer, coagulation analyzer, and a malaria point-of-care device.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has posted several online resources related to Ebola treatment and is expected to have a new web-based on-demand training video posted on Oct. 14.