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Ebola @FollowEbola 8m8 minutes ago
Patient being evaluated for possible #Ebola infection at Jefferson County hospital.
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http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/h...77e5f3b83.html
Patient being evaluated for possible Ebola infection at Jefferson County hospital
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1 hour ago • From staff reports
CRYSTAL CITY • Mercy Hospital Jefferson is treating a person who is possibly infected with Ebola, officials confirmed.
The patient recently returned from West Africa, according to Mercy spokeswoman Bethany Pope.
The patient is considered low risk and is in isolation in a separate facility used for outpatient surgery on the hospital campus.
The hospital is working in collaboration with the Jefferson County Health Department.
Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are aware of the situation, according to a federal official.
The laboratory test to confirm if the patient has Ebola takes four to six hours, said Dr. Nirav Patel, an assistant professor of infectious diseases at St. Louis University. The testing will occur at a lab in Jefferson City, Patel and a federal official confirmed. Jefferson City is more than a two-hour drive from the hospital's campus.
The hospital, about 35 miles south of downtown St. Louis, is at 1400 Highway 61 South and has 251-beds.
The hospital is part of the Chesterfield-based Catholic health care system Mercy Health. The health system operates 32 acute care hospitals in four states.