BY Taiwo George
The highly contagious Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is gradually spreading in the United States, as the Texas Department of Health announced on Wednesday that another healthcare worker had tested positive to the disease.
The worker is among those who attended to Thomas Duncan, the Liberian who imported the virus to the US.
Presently, there are two cases of Ebola in the country. Duncan died on October 8, but Nina Pharm, another medic who contracted the virus while attending to the deceased, is said to be in a stable condition.
The latest victim was not named but was reported to have had fever on Tuesday and was immediately isolated at the hospital.
“Health officials have interviewed the latest patient to quickly identify any contacts or potential exposures and those people will be monitored,” the Texas department of health said in a statement.
“The type of monitoring depends on the nature of their interactions and the potential they were exposed to the virus.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) said a total of 4,447 people have lost their lives to EVD.
On Thursday, the victim was revealed as Amber Vinson, a 29-year-old nurse, who also attended to Duncan.
However, there has been great concern over the fear of the spread of the disease in the country, as Vinson flew from Cleveland to Akrona a day before she was diagnosed.
A source speaking to the CNN said she had a temperature of 99.5F (37.5C) before boarding the flight on October 13.
Vinson was transferred to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta by air ambulance on Wednesday night and will be treated in a special isolation unit.
Dr Tom Frieden, the Centre for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC) director, accepted that Vinson should not have been allowed to take board any flight.
“We will, from this moment forward, ensure that no other individual who is being monitored for exposure undergoes travel in any way other than controlled movement,” Frieden said.
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