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Home visits halted for African students
The Health Ministry has instructed all medical officers and Public Health Inspectors to be on the alert for arrivals to the country who suffer from fever or breathing difficulties as it is possible for people infected with the Ebola virus to enter without undergoing screening at the airport.
There is a freeze on admitting new students from African countries affected by the deadly virus, said Higher Education Ministry Secretary Dr. Sunil Jayantha Navaratne. The Ministry has also suspended scholarships offered to West African countries.
“There are a few students who are already studying here, they have been requested not to travel to their countries for some time and they will undergo medical screening,” Mr. Navaratne said.
Dr. Paba Palihawadane, Head of the Health Ministry’s Epidemiology Unit said health care workers Immigration officers will contact the Airport Health Office when a person arrives from Africa.
From doctors to minor staff in all areas had been given training in handling patients carrying infectious viruses.
“If a person arrives from overseas and suffers from fever during the first 21 days they should immediately visit the nearest hospital or the Infectious Diseases Hospital,” she said.
Passengers arriving from West African countries, especially from Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, will undergo basic medical screening at the airport and be monitored for three weeks by the Health Ministry.
As there are isolated cases in other countries of medical staff being infected after treating Ebola victims, Lankans, including healthcare workers who could have been exposed to the patients, should be extremely cautious, she said.
Passengers arriving from West African countries will have their temperatures taken and go through a risk questionnaire conducted by a qualified medical officer wearing a face mask at the Airport Health Office.
Any passenger showing symptoms of viral flu or Ebola will be immediately taken to the Infectious Diseases Hospital (IDH).
According to the Health Ministry, a 24-hour Emergency Operation Centre has been established at the airport for suspected Ebola cases. A trained health team, including nurses from the Negombo Hospital, is at the Centre.
Health staff at the airport and the IDH have been given special protective gear including masks, goggles, gloves, hazmat (hazardous material) suits, polythene aprons and boots to be used in case of a suspect Ebola sighting.
The IDH has also conducted drills and trained staff, from minor health workers to doctors.
“An isolated ward will be immediately allocated as soon as information is received of a suspected case, either from the airport or Health Ministry. The hospital has facilities to provide basic life support at an isolation ward with supportive treatments in case of medical complications such as haemorrhage,” a medical officer attached to the hospital said.