Committee to hear about ebola precautions
Leo Varadkar and Tony Holohan will meet with the Oireachtas health committee as the threat of the virus spreading escalates. As well as the confirmed case of ebola in a Spanish nurse, it emerged last night that a British man suspected of contracting the disease had died in Macedonia after travelling from Britain and that another British man who was with him had been put into isolation along with the staff in the hotel where they were staying.
Here, the health committee chair, Fine Gael TD Jerry Buttimer, said people were “naturally apprehensive” about the possible spread of the virus and that it was important “people’s fears about a potential outbreak of the virus are allayed and calmed”.
It emerged on Wednesday night that a cross-departmental group, led by the Department of Health, has been working for weeks to ensure the State’s infrastructure is ready to deal with any emerging situations in Ireland.
The cross-departmental group is operating under the remit of the Government Task Force on Emergency Planning, which convened earlier this week to discuss our readiness and capacity to deal with an ebola outbreak. Defence Minister Simon Coveney chaired the meeting, and he will brief Cabinet today on the outcome.
Mr Varadker will also brief the Cabinet on his area of responsibility, as will representatives from justice and foreign affairs.
Yesterday, the director of the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention described the spread of ebola in West Africa as something unseen since the outbreak of Aids.
He said it was “going to be a long fight”.
More than 50 people have been quarantined in Spain following the diagnosis of ebola in a 44-year-old nurse, Teresa Romero, who contracted the disease while treating an infected patient returned from Africa. She is understood to be seriously ill.
In a statement yesterday, the HSE said anyone returning to Ireland from West Africa is advised to look out for fever, headaches, and body aches for three weeks after their return and to contact their doctor should they fall ill and tell them of the recent travel.
The HSE said the overall risk of a case of ebola being imported into Ireland is low and that there have been no cases to date. Directions have been circulated to all acute hospitals, should such a case arise.
However, at the moment, there is no screening taking place at Irish airports and ports.
