It was inevitable, right? I am talking about a potential case of the Ebola virus popping up in the Big Apple. On Thursday afternoon, Oct. 23, Dr. Craig Spencer was rushed from his Harlem home with a police escort en route to Bellevue Hospital. Spencer returned from Africa about 10 days ago after spending time in Guinea treating Ebola patients. He is now suffering from a 103-degree fever and nausea.
Spencer has not yet been diagnosed, so there is still a chance that his tests for Ebola will end up negative and this will amount to nothing more than a scare for the general public. If he happens to test positive, then the CDC will likely have its work cut out for it in retracing Spencer's steps with a multitude of people possibly exposed to the virus.
After watching the CDC trip over its own feet in recent weeks, it has become clear it is figuring things out as it goes along and it has no choice in doing that. It has changed guidelines several times leaving hospital staffers like those in Texas left to figure things out on their own, and the apologies have not held much water.
If Spencer should test positive for the Ebola virus, do you think a city like New York can keep it contained and under control, or is this epidemic turning up in a major U.S. city part of the worst case scenario? The CDC has tried to come across as confident in its latest protocol changes, but do you think that it is secretly shaking in its shoes and just hoping that it is getting things right? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below.
