A community nurse at the Queen’s Park Counselling Centre and Clinic, Port-of-Spain, says T&T is not ready to deal with the Ebola virus despite assurances from Health Minister Dr Fuad Khan.
In an interview, Jason Augustus said the medical fraternity was panicked about the possible spread of Ebola. He said although an Ebola response unit had been set up, the Government had not yet organised staff for the containment units at the Caura District Hospital and the Piarco International Airport.
A four-bed isolation unit at Caura was announced at a post-Cabinet media briefing two weeks ago but Augustus said it was still unclear who would be stationed at the centres. “I have been speaking to nurses and many of them are saying that there is no team in place as yet to handle this situation. The protocols are still being established and finding the staff to actually work there will be the most challenging thing that Government will have to do,” Augustus predicted.
In the meantime, he said nurses and other health care workers were being educated about the spread of Ebola and how easily it could be spread. Asked whether a special incinerator had been set up to deal with Ebola-related waste, Augustus said no. On concerns over whether Ebola-contaminated clothes and other waste could be transported for incineration or disposed of in the same area, Augustus said the existing hospital incinerator could be used and ruled out possible dangers from transporting hazardous waste. “We are trained in this field and we believe that transporting the waste will not present a problem once proper procedures are followed,” Augustus said.
Yes to $10m insurance
Augustus commended the proposal made by PSA president Watson Duke that the State should put in place a $10 million insurance policy for health care workers who might be exposed to Ebola.
“If we have to deal with an Ebola patient, we have to be kept in isolation. It means we will have to stay away from our families for more than 21 days. We will be unable to engage in public transportation. “Our pets may be put to sleep as has happened with the Chile nurse who contacted the disease. We may die if proper procedures are not followed,” Augustus said. He added that additional compensation was warranted and anyone who thought otherwise was not being fair to health care workers.