Conceding its previous Ebola safety protocols failed in Dallas, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued more robust standards aimed at better protecting workers who confront Ebola and other deadly infectious diseases.
CDC Director Dr. Thomas Frieden said late Monday that the new guidelines were designed to increase the margins of safety for healthcare workers. He acknowledged that the previous recommendations, which were first issued in 2008 and last updated this past August, did not work in the case of Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, where two nurses were infected while treating Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan.
The previous guidelines called for healthcare workers to wear a minimum of gloves, a fluid-resistant gown and eye protection. The updated protocols, however, include personal protective equipment that covers the entire body and leaves no skin exposed.