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Victoria is strengthening its defences against two infectious disease threats, launching a diphtheria booster vaccination program while health officials debrief after their first Ebola scare.
On Tuesday, the state’s Ebola response plan was tested for the first time when a man who recently returned from an area near Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) arrived at Monash Medical Centre’s emergency department with symptoms of the disease.
He was transported by ambulance that evening to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Victoria’s designated adult viral haemorrhagic fever health service, where he was placed in a negative pressure room in intensive care.
The scare came just hours after the Health Department convened a meeting with the Royal Melbourne and Royal Children’s Hospitals to discuss their preparedness for Ebola in response to a major outbreak in the DRC and Uganda.
Testing later revealed the patient was not infected, and he was discharged on Wednesday.
“The program we put in place passed its first real-life test after years of planning and practice,” said Associate Professor Chris MacIsaac, director of ICU at the Royal Melbourne.
“Everything worked exactly as we thought it might and very fortunately the patient was cleared of Ebola.”
On Friday, Victorian Chief Health Officer Dr Caroline McElnay issued an Ebola alert for clinicians. She said clinicians should consider Ebola in patients who have fevers above 38 degrees and a history or travel to an outbreak area or contact with someone with the disease.
Ebola is a rare and deadly illness transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids. It causes severe symptoms including intense fever, organ damage and internal bleeding. On Friday, the World Health Organisation said there were 906 suspected cases of Ebola in the DRC and 223 related deaths. Uganda has seven confirmed cases of Ebola.
McElnay told this masthead that while the risk of Ebola in Australia was low, health services needed to prepare. The Health Department has been ensuring that hospitals are equipped with personal protective equipment.
“It is a high-consequence disease, it’s got a high mortality rate,” she said.
“Whilst acknowledging that the risk is low, we are taking this very seriously, and we are prepared.”
She said health authorities were pleased with how health services responded to the suspected Ebola case earlier this week. They are assessing the response to determine whether anything could be improved.
Dr Katherine Bond, acting director of the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory, sprang into action earlier this week when notified of the potential Ebola case. She had been preparing for this moment for some time.
Scientists ensured the laboratory was stocked with the right reagents to test for Ebola and staff had received special training.
The testing took place in a high-containment laboratory housed in the Doherty Institute – the only facility in the state designed to test the high-risk pathogen.
“It’s especially designed to keep people outside the laboratory safe from the infection,” Bond said.
“It also keeps our scientists safe, so it’s a suit lab like you see in the movies. The scientist gets into a special suit to make sure that there’s that separation between the sample and themselves.”
The scientists ran two different tests on the patient’s blood sample, and both returned negative results.
Ebola isn’t the only potentially deadly disease that has health authorities on high alert.
Last month, the chief health officer issued an alert about diphtheria and said Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, particularly those living in or with links to remote communities affected by the current outbreak, were at risk. She said people not fully vaccinated against diphtheria and those overdue for boosters were also vulnerable.
McElnay told this masthead that a diphtheria booster vaccine program would be launched in early June for Victorians who travel and work in high-risk areas interstate, as well as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders people who need a booster.
Australia is in the grips of its worst diphtheria outbreak in decades, with more than 230 cases of the disease recorded this year and one death. The bulk of cases were among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living in outer regional and remote areas of the Northern Territory and Western Australia. Cases have also been recorded in South Australia and Queensland.
McElnay said the risk of a diphtheria outbreak in Victoria was low, but there was a possibility cases might crop up among Victorians who had travelled interstate to outbreak areas.
Health Minister Harriet Shing was recently briefed by the chief health officer on the current Ebola and diphtheria outbreaks.
“Our health system has taken learnings from the once-in-100-year pandemic and is applying it to possible cases of other diseases, like Ebola and diphtheria,” Shing said, adding that Victoria had some of the world’s best minds leading public health responses.
Australian children are vaccinated against diphtheria as part of the usual immunisation schedule. It is bundled into a vaccine that also protects against tetanus and whooping cough.
It is recommended that adults receive a booster every five to 10 years to increase their protection and prevent illness.
Respiratory diphtheria is contracted through droplets spread from sneezing and coughing. The infection can be deadly, and cause severe swelling of the throat and neck, which can obstruct a person’s airway and lead to breathing difficulties. It can also damage the heart, kidneys, brain and nerves.
Cutaneous diphtheria infects the skin and causes sores and ulcers that don’t heal. The infection can be spread by touching these sores.
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Henrietta Cook is a senior reporter covering health for The Age. Henrietta joined The Age in 2012 and has previously covered state politics, education and consumer affairs.Connect via X, Facebook or email.From our partners
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