Physician suites up for Ebola drill

By Spencer Schneier, Staff Writer

Published in print Dec 3, 2014.

Last Tuesday, UNC-Greensboro’s Student Health Services and Emergency Management carried out an Ebola preparedness drill at the Anna M. Gove Student Health Center.

Jason Stogner, UNCG director of emergency management, stated in a public release that the drill “represents a proactive approach to ensuring that emergency preparedness plans are in place and that local emergency management and health care professionals in the community work well together should a real-life situation occur.”

Stogner and Hospital Program Director Tresa Saxton were both on hand to oversee the drill, noting that it went exactly as planned.

The drill began with a Guilford County EMS Mobile Intensive Care Unit pulling up to the Student Health Center.

Two EMS workers got out and began putting on their personal protective equipment (PPE) for handling the Ebola patient.

The suits are Tyvek coveralls, which are made of high-density polyethylene that prevents any particles from penetrating the suit’s membrane.

The EMS workers then put on boots, which were taped to the pants at the top of the shoe to prevent leakage; the same is done with protective gloves.

The workers then put on masks to fully conceal their bodies from the surrounding atmosphere.

While this is occurring, inside the Student Health Center, staff is prepping the patient for removal.

They would also be working to keep the patient stable and quarantined, though they would not be giving them any treatment.

After entering the building, EMS workers then removed the patient who was also covered head-to-toe, as to prevent leaks.

The patient then was placed inside the Mobile ICU and the drill was complete.

Stogner and Saxton both acknowledged that the protocol at UNCG is taken from the suggestions given by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

The CDC protocol came under fire in October after the Ebola virus spread to the United States, though it only did so in a few cases.

Both Stogner and Saxton stressed that an Ebola event occurring at UNCG is unlikely.

Stogner, who began at UNCG in August, was unsure if there were currently any international students at UNCG from the Western African countries affected most by the outbreak: Guinea, Sierra Leone and Liberia.

He stressed that— even in the case of a student being from one of those countries— the risk at UNCG is still relatively low and the proper protocol is in place to handle any exceptions.

Duke University in Durham, N.C. recently had a potential Ebola patient, who eventually tested negative for the disease.

Duke’s medical staff followed the CDC guidelines, but Saxton said UNCG did not specifically reference the Duke protocol when outlining its own plan for an Ebola patient.

While the proper equipment is in place for hospital workers to handle an Ebola patient in Guilford County, UNCG’s Health Center lacks a designated isolation room, Saxton told The Carolinian.

She explained that the Student Health Center had to set up an isolation area, setting aside a triage room, a bathroom and a hallway, which was separated from the rest of the building and became the pseudo-isolation room that would be used in case of a potential Ebola patient at UNCG.

Chancellor Linda Brady released a statement to the UNCG community Monday in which she warned against international students from affected countires traveling home.

“Non-essential university-related travel to these affected areas will be suspended until further notice. Although the University does not restrict personal travel for students, faculty and staff during the upcoming holiday breaks, those who do travel are encouraged to exercise caution during this time,” Brady said.

“The health care systems in countries affected by the Ebola outbreak are seriously challenged at this point,” Brady warned.

“Resources may not be available to treat routine emergency health needs for U.S. citizens, and the U.S. State Department’s diplomatic ability to help U.S. citizens with medical evacuation may be severely restricted,” Brady said.     

“Should essential circumstances require travel to the affected area,” she continued, we strongly urge that, upon return, travelers report to the Guilford County Health Department to provide them with details of their travel, as well as notifying their UNCG supervisors.”

The U.S.protocol for airplane passengers  coming from West Africa requires passengers to come through specific airports and get checked for Ebola symptoms.

Raleigh-Durham International Airport and Charlotte Douglas International Airport are not on the list of six airports through which travelers from West Africa must come.

The drill was carried out as part of UNCG’s required quota for two emergency drills throughout the year, which is mandated for all North Carolina state schools.

Saxton noted that Guilford County Health Services would monitor the patient, as well as anyone they came in contact with in the event of an Ebola case.

The drill did not account for factors such as where the student reports from, or with whom they came in contact.

Stogner said that the drill was a success, not only because it went smoothly, but also because they found places to improve.

“That’s why you do these exercises. You want to have a few things to come up with,” Stogner said.