It was announced late last night that a healthcare provider who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the Dallas patient who died of the Ebola virus last week, has tested positive for the virus on a preliminary test conducted by the Texas Department of State Health Services. The CDC is conducting additional tests to confirm the diagnosis.
Dallas ISD has been able to confirm that the healthcare provider does not have any children and the district has not been notified of any staff members or students having had contact with the healthcare provider. It is important to note that the Ebola virus can only be transmitted when an infected individual is exhibiting symptoms. The healthcare provider self-monitored twice daily and drove to the hospital upon exhibiting symptoms.
The five Dallas ISD students who were possibly exposed to Mr. Duncan continue to exhibit no signs or symptoms of the virus and continue to be monitored twice daily. As noted in Friday’s update, these students will not return to school until they have not exhibited signs or symptoms of the virus for 21 days. According to the Texas Department of State Health Services and the CDC, if a person exposed to Ebola does not contract the virus within 21 days of exposure, it is definitive that they do not have the virus and therefore have a zero percent chance of contracting the virus (unless exposed again) or transmitting the virus to someone else. The district encourages students, parents, staff, and the community to learn about Ebola using the resources posted at www.dallasisd.org/healthupdates.
Dallas ISD continues to work closely with local, state, and federal health agencies and will continue to provide updates as information becomes available.
For questions regarding Ebola, you can also contact the CDC hotline at 1-800-232-4636.
