I talked to a 30 Year Experienced ER Doctor about the career and Ebola. On my mind because I want to tell you what I learned today. But, before I go on Ebola can I just say that ER Doctors are amazing adrenaline junkies who are our lifes ultimate detectives? We need more of them! I LOVE DOCTORS. Anyway The Dallas Ebola situation from the ER Doctor: 1. The Dallas hospital messed up. It is the job of the hospital to diagnose the patient not for the patient to diagnose himself. Yes, he lied, however, is it really his fault? An ER doctors main job is to be a very thorough detective. The hospital should have understood the systems and tested it out ASAP: i) very clear he was traveling back from Africa ii) From Liberia iii) Coughing up blood iv) showing signs of similar to Ebola. Why was he just given antibiotics and on his way? Obviously, for a reason or another, the nurse didnt care about the patient at all. Therefore, its the nurses fault because she wasnt THINKING to watch out for the signs. She should be reprimanded. Thomas Duncan shouldnt get prosecuted because if he does what will happen - future patients will be scared to go into hospitals to get themselves checked out. 2. Ebola: There is no cure for it because, as she said, youll only survive by luck. Its the ultimate natural selection virus. As long as you get constant fluids in you (IVs) then everyone waits to see if your immune system will win. There is a drug out there to help your immune system fight it even more (a doctor used it on himself and lived) but there are no more resources of this drug (theyre making it now but itll take months for the FDA to approve and to hit the markets). Also, you can survive by getting a blood transfusion from someone who has survived Ebola. For example, there were a couple of patients (in Africa) who had Ebola and lived because they received the liquid of red blood cells of a patient who survived Ebola. Downside? You need to have the same blood time. The virus is not transferrable while it is in incubation mode (2-3weeks)... but once you start having systems of coughing / vomiting / diarrhea/ sweating... anywhere you touch is infectious. For example, if youre in a hotel and you start sweating on the sheets. The sheets are now infected. Ways to avoid? Stay healthy. Wash your hands. Be clean. Be aware. Shes concerned but if doctors are more acute and watching out for signs - Ebola wont spread in the US. For example, in NY - several patients were isolated because ER doctors thought they had the Ebola virus. Granted, they didnt... but that just shows how cautious and aware these doctors are in NY. I will end by saying what she said: New York ER doctors are better than ER doctors in Texas. Her words not mine. Okay thats it for today! I hope this helps someone?
Posted on: Sat, 04 Oct 2014 18:24:53 +0000
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