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Should Ebola or another infectious disease strike Chattanooga, a team of health care professionals is ready
Although Chattanooga’s health care systems have never treated anyone for Ebola virus, Africa’s latest outbreak is a reminder that in today’s world, emerging infectious diseases are only a plane ride away.
In the event that a rare, deadly pathogen should strike the region, there’s a network of behind-the-scenes health care professionals – hospital workers, emergency medical services providers, health department staff – trained and prepared to handle the situation. They also know that there’s risk involved.
“We’re putting our lives on the line, potentially,” said Suzanne Hornsby, special pathogens team lead at Erlanger. “They’re very passionate about making sure that we are as prepared as possible, that we are keeping ourselves safe and our patients safe, and this is not something that they take lightly.”
In her day-to-day work, Hornsby helps manage medical intensive care units at the hospital. But she’s also poised to lead Erlanger’s special pathogens team of 24 nurses, technicians and physicians who voluntarily trained and committed to care for patients with highly-contagious pathogens like Ebola, Marburg virus, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).
Following the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the United States government sought to beef up the nation’s ability to respond and treat patients infected with Ebola and other emerging infectious diseases in the event they traveled into the country.