While the number of high-isolation beds in the U.S. has grown exponentially since the 2014 Ebola outbreak, other challenges to responding to such an outbreak remain, according to a study in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.
"In the past year, the United States saw an intense effort across the country to rapidly expand the capacity for high-level isolation patient care," said John Lowe, PhD, a lead author of a study in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. "Our study shows an unprecedented increase in the number of high-level isolation beds across the country and found a variety of approaches to achieving this capability."
Researchers from several institutions collaborated to survey the capabilities and capacity of the nation's 55 designated Ebola treatment centers, of which, 47 responded.
The responses showed that while these specialized centers have helped up the nation's ability to respond to an Ebola outbreak, some challenges in capacity still remain, including the following issues.
- Only 11 respondents reported having the capability to properly sterilize infectious waste generated by an Ebola patient on-site
- Staffing remains a concern, especially since staffing an Ebola treatment center is voluntary, and it can be difficult to sustain a fully trained team when the unit is empty
- Most of the centers have the capacity to treat adult Ebola patients but do not plan to care for pediatric patients, and not much is known about the level of resources or staffing necessary to treat a child with Ebola in the U.S.
"Owing to the complex and costly nature of Ebola virus disease treatment and variability in capabilities from facility to facility, in conjunction with the lack of regulations, nationwide capacity in specialized facilities is limited," the study concludes.