Pulaski

I meant the immigration problems of visa and how he came to be in the US, whether he should be deported, whether the threat of prosecution in Liberia meant he could claim asylum, etc. which became a topic of debate on this thread, are all issues that have gone away.

bewildering

RIP

I think the most interesting question was whether he got substandard care because of his lack of insurance? They sent a highly contagious person back into the community. Would they have sent someone with insurance back home with antibiotics? Would a primary care physician, unavailable to him, have insisted on treatment at a hospital?

Pulaski

Did they know he was highly contagious? I suspect that most people who showed up at hospital with stomach cramps would be given only a basic examination and told to return if the symptoms persisted or worsened.

scrubbedexpat091

Well Spain apparently hasn't done any better with the nurse that turned out to have Ebola and even after she was tested positive for Ebola apparently spent 8 hours in the ER exposed to everyone in the place.

Seems they haven't really controlled this outbreak well.

jeepster

No, it's because the admitting agent was probably a Mexican immigrant who didn't speak english very well. They had menitioned language difficulties when trying to explain the screw up. You know it's like you have a problem with some kind of widget that you bought and when you call up customer service you get somebody in India who doesn't know Indianapolis from
Minneapolis. It has everything to do with American Managements' attitude towards labor. That's the American dream "cheap labor".

WEBlue

Second Ebola diagnosis confirmed at the same Dallas hospital where Thomas Eric Duncan died. The person is a hospital care worker who helped look after Duncan, so this is similar to the case of the Spanish nurse who was infected despite using the protective gear and correct Ebola protocol.


Texas health worker becomes 2nd person diagnosed in U.S. with Ebola | Reuters

cranston

According to our local radio station, he had a temperature of 103 when he first went to ER and they knew he had come from Liberia. The hospital have confirmed they have subsequently changed their policies since the guy was admitted.

That sounds like a lawsuit to me.

WEBlue

Seems a possibility. Family members in Chicago have talked to Jesse Jackson.

Pulaski

If there is a lawsuit, the family had better be prepared to pay to defend any winnings because I suspect the person who caught ebola from the deceased Liberian, or her heirs, will be coming after the money because he infected her.

sir_eccles

Never assign to malice and all that.

Given the level of geography competance the triage nurse probably thought west Africa was a suburb of Dallas.

scrubbedexpat099

Where he was living was a part of West Africa.

robin1234

Not really "winnings" though, would they be. Their loved one died, perhaps partly through the negligence of the hospital.

scrubbedexpat091

The news here had reported the Spanish nurse didn't follow procedure and had touched her face with an infected glove when taking off her protective equipment.

I'd venture something similar happened here, PPE is only effective if the person wearing it ensures they take it off properly.

WEBlue

Hmmm, our news is saying the cause of the Spanish nurse's infection is still "speculative", not confirmed--and is under "exhaustive" investigation by Spanish health authorities.

Meanwhile, hospital workers at that particular Spanish hospital have apparently pointed the finger at the protective garments themselves. They say that unbeknownst to them some of the hospital's protective gear was not up to snuff, apparently manufactured to a lower level than is required for diseases such as Ebola....

THAT seems frightening to me, that they thought they were adequately clothed for working with the virus, but were not.

Worker: Woman in ER 8 hours after positive Ebola test - CNN.com

Michael

Although they say the same about Ebola as they did say about AIDS that neither can be transmitted by air and bodily fluids must be exchanged to get the virus, apparently the Ebola virus is much more contagious since hospital staff won't treat someone with Ebola unless the staff is suited with head to toe outfits and respirators. If the Ebola virus is not an airborne virus, then the only likely logical explanation is that the Ebola virus can live outside the body on the skin, clothing, bedding, etc. for long periods of time where as the AIDS virus apparently can't.

WHO | Unprecedented number of medical staff infected with Ebola