Montgomery County health officials said plans and efforts are in place at local hospitals to combat a potential virus outbreak and to treat patients who may be affected with highly infectious diseases.
In addition, officials say area residents should take precautions to prevent the spread of diseases, including Ebola, West Nile and enterovirus-68.
While no cases of Ebola have been reported in Montgomery County, the state of Texas has reported three since October. Dr. John Butler, medical director of infection prevention and system epidemiologist at Memorial Hermann Health System, said the hospital system follows a set of procedures for patients who may be infected with Ebola and other viruses.
"If we suspect a patient has an infectious disease, our caregivers follow established infection prevention protocols, which can include donning of appropriate personal protective equipment and isolation precautions," he said.
Butler said the chances of becoming infected with Ebola are slim.
"While we understand the heightened awareness surrounding Ebola, it is important to stress that your risk of contracting Ebola in the United States remains low," Butler said.
Safety precautions for infectious viruses like Ebola include good hygiene, he said. Butler stressed the importance of getting inoculated for viruses that do have vaccinations.
"It is also important to note that good hand hygiene and getting annual vaccinations like a flu shot go a long way in keeping you and your family safe from many infectious diseases," he said.
Preparation and prevention
Mark Escott, Montgomery County Hospital District medical director, said in a statement hospitals are actively performing drills that prepare team members on how to process patient who may be infected with Ebola. He said the drills are designed to protect the personal safety of health care providers as well as to protect the public.
Sherri Fogarty, a neonatal nurse at Memorial Hermann The Woodlands Hospital, said the hospital conducted Ebola drills in early October.
"We have a very detailed plan of accepting patients and redirecting them to a facility that has a complete isolation floor," Forgarty said.
Ebola and other viruses
The Department of State Health Services has reported an increase in West Nile Virus cases in Texas: 238 to date in 2014 compared to 138 cases in 2013. According to the DSHS, the virus can take two forms in infected patients, West Nile neuroinvasive disease and West Nile fever. Montgomery County has seen a total of 25 cases in 2014.
Escott said Montgomery and Harris counties each follow mosquito abatement procedures to help cut down on potential West Nile virus infections.
"The first line of attack is to use ground spray," Escott said. "Once you reach a certain threshold, you have to look at aerial spraying."
Escott said the DSHS' plan to prevent West Nile virus is to discuss what certain areas should do when the population increases. To prevent infections, people and mosquitoes are tested, he said.
"The more people that have West Nile, the more likely it will be transmitted to someone else," Escott said. "So you have to break the cycle by taking care of the mosquitoes all at the same time. If you take out the mosquitos with the West Nile, that gives you a gap of time."
Meanwhile, EV-68, which affects children, has infected 15 people in Texas this year, according to the DSHS. The DSHS has reported no cases in Montgomery County in 2014.
Conroe ISD Communications Director Sarah Wood said Montgomery County Public Health District has been in close contact with the districts schools regarding EV-68 and other viruses, and how to prevent their spread.
"They have provided numerous health alerts with detailed information regarding EV-68 and the Ebola virus," Wood said. "They have provided screening tools for the clinical setting as well as recommendations and resources for more information regarding these individual viruses from the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."
Informing the public
Patrick Bordnick is a professor with the University of Houston's Graduate College of Social Work who works in alleviating the public's fears with regard to infectious diseases.
Bordnick said the key to allaying panic about viruses is in providing accurate information based on scientific data.
"It is properly educating people about the specifics about whatever illness it is," Bordnick said. "When HIV first came on the scene, there was a huge fear and people gravitated toward the worst case scenario."
Bordnick said the media, government and CDC should put out public service announcements when a new virus begins to spread in the U.S. because people stay calm when they are informed.
"You can see them sort of relax when you give them a little bit of education," Bordnick said. "There are scary viruses, but when you give people the proper public health information they start to have good scientific knowledge. We need good education with any of these viruses."
