An infectious disease specialist at the University of Rochester Medical Center says that facility is prepared if a patient should come in with symptoms consistent with the Ebola virus.
Dr. John Treanor says while Rochester is not a typical destination for travelers from West Africa, where there is an Ebola epidemic, the hospital is ready.
Treanor believes medical professionals all across the country have learned from the reported breakdown in communication at a Dallas hospital, where an Ebola patient was initially sent away before his illness was confirmed.
"I suspect that what you'll be seeing is health care providers asking questions about travel multiple times, so that it won't just be something that comes up when people get triaged at the front desk,” Treanor said. “It's going to be something that everyone is going to be asking people with acute febrile illnesses multiple times during their evaluation."
Dr. Treanor believes that it is inevitable that more Ebola cases will be seen in this country, but he urges a sense of calm.
"There will be additional cases imported in the U.S., without a doubt, and it's not going to spread inside this country. I think hospitals are ready to take reasonable precautions and our health care system will be able to deal with this."
