CDC issues Ebola checklist

CDC issues Ebola checklist: 'Now is the time to prepare'
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Paul Bedard (Washington Examiner)
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CDC issues Ebola checklist
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, warning hospitals and doctors that “now is the time to prepare,” has issued a six-page Ebola “checklist” to help healthcare workers quickly determine if patients are infected.

While the CDC does not believe that there are new cases of Ebola in the United States, the assumption in the checklist is that it is only a matter of time before the virus hits home.

For example, one part reads: “Encourage healthcare personnel to use a ‘buddy system’ when caring for patients.” Another recommends a process to report cases to top officials:

Plan for regular situational briefs for decision-makers, including:

Suspected and confirmed EVD patients who have been identified and reported to public health authorities.

Isolation, quarantine and exposure reports.

Supplies and logistical challenges.

Personnel status, and policy decisions on contingency plans and staffing.

The checklist has been distributed to major hospitals and even little ones, including an urgent center in Leesburg, Va.
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Handbook of Modern Hospital Safety, Second Edition
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Detailed Hospital Checklist for Ebola Preparedness
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What the government doesn't want to tell you about ebola
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SEQUENCE FOR
PUTTING ON PERSONAL PROTECTION EQUIPMENT (PDF FOR HOSPITALS)
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Respiratory Protection
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Purpose – protect from inhalation of infectious aerosols (e.g., Mycobacterium tuberculosis)

PPE types for respiratory protection
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Particulate respirators
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Half- or full-face elastomeric respirators
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Powered air purifying respirators (PAPR)
PPE Use in Healthcare Settings PPE also is used to protect healthcare
workers’ from hazardous or infectious aerosols, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Respirators that filter the air before it is inhaled should be used for respiratory protection.

The most commonly used respirators in healthcare settings are the N95, N99, or
N100 particulate respirators. The device has a sub-micron filter capable of
excluding particles that are less than 5 microns in diameter.

Respirators are approved by the CDC’s National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Like other PPE, the selection of a respirator type must consider the nature of the
exposure and risk involved. For example, N95 particulate respirators might be worn
by personnel entering the room of a patient with infectious tuberculosis.

However, if a bronchoscopy is performed on the patient, the healthcare provider might wear a higher level of respiratory protection, such as a powered air-purifying respirator or PAPR.
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(Sounds like an N99 is something the public should have on hand possibly.) Story Reports