October 26, 2014
...Hickox, (click here) who returned from working with Ebola victims in Sierra Leone, has retained civil rights attorney Norman Siegel to sue for her freedom in New Jersey federal court later this week....
The professional organizations really need to chime in here. The CDC has made it's decision and written policy and has worked diligently to protect Americans from Ebola. If nothing else the professional organizations need to at least adopt the policy of the CDC.
This should not be a political issue, it needs to be the most correct method of protection with the least restrictions on anyone's personal lives simply to encourage compliance with the policy. Symptoms are clear; fatigue with or without a fever and/or simply a fever. No two people are the same and I would not expect all people to have exactly the same initial symptoms. Dr. Spencer was the first patient to report fatigue for 48 hours before the fever. So, getting on top of this virus is getting more perfected and earlier.
What I am concerned about is the political partisanship that can occur and currently Ms. Hickox's boyfriend is calling her detention fear mongering. I don't think that is it. I think Dr. Spencer experiencing fatigue and then as reported in the media a 103 F temperature was very alarming. It was alarming to me. But, the fever was false information. It was 100.3 F which falls in line with the know sequela. So, we are still in consistent territory and not experiencing a different virus.
I sincerely believe the governors counted their last census and moved quickly to prevent any chance of passing along the virus. I don't believe it was fear mongering so much as alarm at the information coming from many sources.
There needs to be unity in any policy statement by professional organizations. Unfortunately, the CDC is standing alone and without a Surgeon General. So, if the AMA and Nursing organizations would decide their own policies and I would hope they would be in line with the CDC, but, the authorship should be real. There is nothing saying the AMA accepts the CDC policy and guidelines as the best path at the moment.
