Potential Ebola Patient Being Treated In Sacramento
SACRAMENTO (CBS SF) -- A patient suspected of potentially having been exposed to Ebola is being treated at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento.
"We have a staff that is trained and ready at a moments' notice," said UC Davis Medical Center spokesperson Dorsey Griffith.
The priority hospital is a designated care facility for Ebola cases. Doctors got about two hours notice early Thursday morning to prepare for the patient.
Dignity Health officials said in a statement that the patient was first taken to one of their hospitals before being transferred to UC Davis.
"In coordination with the public health department and CDC, Dignity Health Mercy General Hospital has transferred a patient to UC Davis Medical Center, which is specifically equipped to care for patients suspected of having or diagnosed with Ebola as part of the public health department's preparedness plan. We are proud of our caregivers and staff for the excellent care and compassion they showed to the patient and for their collaboration and attention to detail," wrote Melissa Jue from Dignity Health.
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Several previous patients have been isolated in Bay Area and Northern California hospitals for potential Ebola exposure, but after testing, none of those patients actually had the virus.
At an Associated Press forum on Ebola last fall, a Stanford doctor warned that actual confirmed Ebola cases could eventually hit every major city in America.
"I don't think there's going to be a huge outbreak here, no," said Dr. David Relman, a professor of infectious disease, microbiology and immunology at Stanford University's medical school. "However, as best we can tell right now, it is quite possible that every major city will see at least a handful of cases."