Aurora, Colo. – Out of an abundance of caution, and following protocol, UCHealth and the CDPHE have transported a patient to University of Colorado Hospital who presented Wednesday with Ebola symptoms.
Earlier today, a test conducted by CDPHE showed the patient was negative for Ebola. However, physicians, nurses and staff will keep the patient in isolation out of an abundance of caution.
“We’ve trained for many months to safely respond to a possible Ebola patient, and our protocols call for transporting the patient to UCH when possible to safely continue evaluation and treatment,” said Bill Neff, MD, UCHealth chief medical officer.
The patient will stay in UCH’s secure, isolation unit, away from other patients, where health care experts will determine whether additional testing is warranted.
Experts from UCHealth and CDPHE will be available at 1 p.m. to answer questions from news media:
Where: University of Colorado Hospital, 12505 E. 16th Ave., Aurora, CO 80045 ** Please use the Emergency entrance where a media relations representative will be waiting for you.
When: Thursday, April 2, 2015, 1 p.m.
Who: Interview Opportunities with:
- Dr. Michelle Barron, Director of Infectious Diseases and Prevention, University of Colorado Hospital
- Dr. Rachel Herlihy, Director of Disease Control and Environmental Epidemiology, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
- Katie O’Donnell, Public Information Officer, Larimer County Department of Health and Environment
The patient was transported to Medical Center of the Rockies by a specially equipped ambulance on Wednesday evening after becoming ill. The patient had recently traveled to an Ebola-affected country.
For more information on Ebola, visit CDPHE at https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/search/site/ebola or CDC at http://www.cdc.gov/.