Ocean County Health Department Preps To Protect Lacey, Other Towns From Ebola

The Ocean County Health Department is taking a proactive approach to dealing with the Ebola threat, including preventive measures and containing the virus should it surface, County Public Health Coordinator Daniel Regenye said.

But Regenye stressed that no cases have been reported in Ocean County or New Jersey and the likelihood of virus transmission person to person is low.

“There are still many unknowns regarding Ebola,” he said. “Many are asking if there is a danger of Ebola spreading in the United States. To the best of our knowledge and following CDC guidelines regarding transmission, Ebola is not spread through casual contact; therefore, the risk of an outbreak in the U.S. is extremely low.”

The virus can be contained by isolating ill people and tracking those who have come into contact with them while they were contagious, Regenye said.

“We know how to stop Ebola’s further spread; through case finding, isolation of ill people, contacting people exposed to the ill person and further isolation of contacts for the appropriate amount of time,” he said. “People need to remember that Ebola is not airborne and a person must have symptoms to be able to spread to others.”

The health department would also be able to provide contact tracing of a person with a suspected or confirmed case of Ebola, Regenye said.

The ability to identify suspected or confirmed cases quickly is important, said Jennifer Crawford, OCHD Supervisor of Communicable Disease,

“We are working with our healthcare partners and emergency management to further develop emergency operations that will address the concerns and unique needs of healthcare facilities,” Crawford said. “We want to ensure that healthcare providers, who may care for Ebola patients or persons under investigation, are trained and consider the resource needs, such as personal protective equipment, (PPE). It is necessary to identify any gaps ahead of time and the resources to fill the gaps.”

OCHD is preparing risk communication messages for internal staff as well as for the public on Ebola which include risks to the public, risk of transmission and protective measures. Links to these can be found on the OCHD website at www.ochd.org. The OCHD also encourages all partners to join the OCHD HAN which is an extension of the CDC Health Alert Network. And OCHD Health alert Network staff person is responsible for getting these messages out 24/7.

The OCHD has also added to its website a brochure entitled Coping with the Emotional Impact of Public Health Emergencies. It gives information where you can get reliable information, coping with emergencies, uncertainty, reactions to a public health risk, and ways to cope with stress and anxiety. Please visit the OCHD website at www.ochd.org for updated information.

Some of the steps the Health Department has already taken include:

• • The OCHD has participated in numerous conference calls with the New Jersey Department of Health (NJDOH) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
• • Staff from the Communicable Disease Unit has been in constant communication with many partners including but not limited to the healthcare community, hospitals, schools and the Office of Emergency Management.
• • A conference call with all area hospital infection control practitioners (ICP) is scheduled to take place in the near future.
• • A letter outlining steps taken is being mailed to all municipal mayors.
• • The OCHD has been communicating with Ocean County Emergency Management and Emergency Medical Services regarding protocol for a suspect or confirmed case of Ebola.
• • The OCHD sent out information on Ebola and Enterovirus D-68 to all school superintendents in Ocean County.
  
• • The OCHD presented at the September Ocean County Superintendent’s Roundtable on emerging infectious diseases.
  
• • Updates are made on the OCHD website daily. Tweets and Facebook are also updated daily.
  
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