US doctor exposed to Ebola to be treated in Prague under strict isolation
Czechia is set to receive an American doctor exposed to Ebola while treating patients in Uganda. He is due to arrive in Prague on Wednesday evening at the request of the United States. Health Minister Adam Vojtěch says the case poses no risk to the public.
Health Minister Adam Vojtěch says Czech authorities were approached by the US embassy in Prague after several American doctors who had treated Ebola patients in Uganda and Congo needed to be evacuated. Most are heading to Germany, while Czechia agreed to take one patient to the specialised infectious diseases unit at Prague’s Bulovka Hospital.
The doctor has no symptoms so far and the disease has not been confirmed, but officials say he was exposed to Ebola and must remain in strict isolation for up to three weeks.
Vojtěch says the transport itself is designed to eliminate contact with the public.
“No one should be with him except the pilots, who will be separated from him. The aircraft is private, not a regular commercial flight. It is arranged by the United States.
“The person will not come into contact with anyone, even at the airport, because the plane will land directly on the tarmac at Prague Airport, where a specialised emergency medical team will take over.”
The patient will then be transferred directly to Bulovka Hospital under special safety measures. According to the health minister, he is expected to travel in a sealed isolation unit, in line with international medical transport protocols.
Doctors will monitor him throughout the Ebola incubation period, which can last up to 21 days.
“That means the person will be hospitalised and isolated at Bulovka for roughly three weeks. If the disease does not develop, he will then be released because it will be clear that he is neither infected nor contagious.”
The World Health Organization has declared its second-highest alert level over the Ebola outbreak in parts of central Africa. Alongside Congo, cases are now also spreading in Uganda. The current outbreak involves the less well-known Bundibugyo strain of the virus, for which there is no approved vaccine or treatment.
Ebola is a rare but often deadly disease spread through direct contact with bodily fluids such as blood, sweat, saliva or urine. The virus can also spread through contaminated materials or during funeral rituals involving contact with the bodies of victims.
Ebola has never previously appeared in Czechia, and public health officials say the risk of the virus spreading from Congo to the country remains low. However, they have advised travellers returning from affected areas to monitor their health for 21 days and contact a doctor by phone if they develop symptoms.