Clark County has Plans in Place to Respond to Ebola (Full Press Release)
Monday, October 20th, 2014 -- 10:11 AM
-The Wisconsin Department of Health Services recently announced that Wisconsin has plans in place to respond to Ebola in the event it's diagnosed in our state. Clark County residents should know that the Clark County Health Department is, like State and Federal agencies, monitoring activity and is in communication with local hospitals, Memorial Medical Center and Ministry Our Lady of Victory Hospital, as well as other partners to assure effective response in the event Ebola were to be diagnosed in our county. No Ebola cases have been identified in Wisconsin."We have been working with local partners to plan and prepare for the health needs of Clark County residents for quite some time, and we continue to use those partnerships as well all plan and coordinate a response if this virus hits us locally," said Robert Leischow, Health Officer/Director of the Clark County Health Department.
Ministry Health Care and Memorial Medical Center have both formed a system wide Incident Command Team to better prepare and further ensure the detection of infected patients and the protection of healthcare workers to safely care for these patients. The Incident Command Team is a multidisciplinary group, with representation from acute and ambulatory associates throughout the health system, HR, IT, lab and communications. The team also serves as a liaison to local and state health departments as well as national reference facilities for guideline adherence, education dissemination and epidemiological data gathering.
Ebola is spread through direct contact with bodily fluids of a sick person or exposure to objects such as needles that have been contaminated. Ebola is not air-borne. Individuals are only contagious when they have symptoms. People at the highest risk of contracting Ebola are those who have recently been to West Africa or who have had direct contact with someone who has traveled to that area. Symptoms of Ebola include favor greater than 101.5 degrees, severe headache, muscle pain, weakness, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain and unexplained bleeding or bruising.
No known case of Ebola has been identified in Wisconsin. However, if you suspect you may have Ebola, you should call the hospital or clinic before going in so staff can be properly prepared for you arrival. If you need to call 911 for immediate care, tell dispatchers if you have recently traveled to West Africa or had direct contact with someone who has.
To learn more about Ebola, visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's website at www.cdc./gov/vhf/ebola.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.