Ebola Resources for Nurses: The Most Authoritative Sites
By the TravelNursing.com staff
After a couple of tense weeks and a flood of national attention, two Texas nurses infected with the Ebola virus recently received some good news: they are now free of the disease and no longer need to be isolated. Nurse Nina Pham was declared Ebola-free and released from care at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Md., on Oct. 24; nurse Amber Vinson was declared free of the disease on Oct. 22 in a statement released by her family. Vinson remains at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta where she continues to recover.
Both nurses apparently contracted this severe and often fatal disease while treating Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan, who had traveled from Liberia before showing signs of infection. Duncan eventually died from the disease on Oct. 8.
As of Oct. 25, the 2014 Ebola epidemic has been responsible for nearly 5,000 deaths, primarily in the West African countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
As the Ebola story continues to unfold, U.S. health care workers are being inundated with suggestions about dealing with suspected Ebola-infected patients. Government officials are cautioning people not to panic, but to be aware of the dangers and keep up with the latest disease guidelines.
To help nurses be better informed and prepared, TravelNursing.com has compiled links to some of the latest Ebola resources for nurses from authoritative sources.
Top Ebola Resources for Nurses
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): Ebola Virus Disease
Hospitals and healthcare workers continue to look to the CDC for the nation’s most authoritative information on Ebola. Many updated protocols and guidelines have been made available in recent days based on the 2014 outbreak, especially since it has reached the United States and affected health care workers. With daily updates, the CDC site has comprehensive information on historical and recent outbreaks, signs and symptoms of the disease, how it is transmitted, risk of exposure, guidelines for health care workers managing or preparing for the disease (including use of personal protective equipment), prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
American Nurses Association (ANA): Ebola Information
The American Nurses Association Ebola page hosts a number of helpful resources, including general information about the disease, updated guidelines for health care workers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), statements advocating for improved safety at hospitals with strategies for change, and a two-part educational webinar series for nurses, on Oct. 28 and Oct. 30.
American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN): Ebola Resources Guide
The American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN) has announced the availability of an Ebola Resources Guide for nurses and other health care professionals involved in the care of worker populations. “We encourage all occupational and environmental health professionals to provide the worker populations they serve with evidence-based information about Ebola, the disease, its transmission and recommended protection for prevention,” said AAOHN President Pam Carter.
American Hospital Association (AHA): Ebola Preparedness Resources
The American Hospital Association’s Ebola site includes links to information for hospitals and their staff. Visitors can download national call transcripts and webinars about Ebola preparedness, policy statements, CDC guidelines and checklists, public health communications and other resources.
AMN Healthcare: Ebola Resources for Nurses, Physicians and Other Health Care Workers
As the nation’s largest healthcare staffing company, AMN Healthcare is dedicated to ensuring their clinicians are safe. “We take very seriously our responsibility to you, our clinicians and physicians, in providing you with the most current information possible about the occurrences of patients with Ebola Viral Disease in the U.S.,” said Marcia Faller, PhD, RN, AMN’s chief clinical officer, who encourages nurses to be informed and participate in any and all Ebola educational opportunities at the work site. AMN has compiled Ebola resources from the government and other credible sources, and is posting daily updates as new information becomes available. Nurses can download the AMN Ebola Resource Guide, an article on using personal protective equipment, CDC information and more.
World Health Organization (WHO): Ebola Global Alert and Response
The WHO Ebola website includes outbreak information from around the world, including disease maps, information on global response, an Ebola fact sheet, international reports, vaccine news, answers to frequently asked questions and more.
Johns Hopkins Medicine: Web-based learning (coming soon):
Johns Hopkins Medicine has been tasked by the CDC to lead a group and to design an interactive web-based learning program that guides nurses and other health care workers through government-approved protocols to aid clinicians as they provide care to patients who may be at risk of contracting the Ebola virus. The program will train health care providers in three critical areas: (1) proper donning of personal protective equipment (PPE); (2) the safe removal of gear; and, (3) active monitoring skills. The modules will be available for free on the CDC’s website in the coming weeks and later available to the millions of iOS users on iTunes U.
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