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NEW YORK (AP) — Bellevue Hospital Center, the world's oldest public hospital, was designated this month as the main venue for handling Ebola cases should any show up in New York City. A look at the hospital's preparation:
ISOLATION: The city health commissioner said last week that Bellevue has dozens of staff at the ready and four isolation rooms established. That number can quickly expand to 20 if needed. Extra electrical capacity was being added to handle intensive care.
BLOOD: Bellevue was setting up a dedicated laboratory in the infectious disease ward to handle Ebola blood samples, a spokesman said. The samples would then not have to be transported around the hospital, minimizing the risk of contamination.
TRAINING: Hospital spokesman Ian Michaels told Scientific American that all nurses and other professionals have been trained to identify and isolate a possible Ebola patient. For an active Ebola patient, a highly experienced and competent team has been specially equipped. He said Bellevue's plan calls for as few people as possible to be exposed to the patient.
HISTORY: New York City's Health and Hospitals Corp. says Bellevue is particularly well suited to handle Ebola because of "its long history of being on the front lines of epidemics and emerging public health threats." It said Bellevue has managed isolation units for diseases such as tuberculosis for many years.
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