1) What does Betsy McCaughey identify as a problem in her commentary?
She says that American virtually have no risk of getting Ebola, yet doctors and nurses treating an Ebola patient are at high risk, despite CDC assurances that its "protocols" work. CDC Director Thomas Frieden predicted that any hospital could handle Ebola, but that was proved false when Thomas Duncan died after going to the Texas Health Presbyterian last month.
2) What solutions does she offer?
She offers that it would be safer to transport any patient diagnosed with Ebola to one of the bio-containment centers in Georgia, Maryland, Montana, and Nebraska, but those 4 facilities can only treat 11 patients. She also says that these facilities should expand, rather than outfitting hundreds of hospitals to treat ebola. McCaughey clearly states that hospitals should be prepared to recognize possible cases, isolate them - and then call for help.
3) How does infection expert Sean Kaufman view the CDC's guidelines for protective gear in treating Ebola patients?
Kaufman stated that the guideline was "absolutely irresponsible and dead wrong."
4) What point did Rep. Michael Burgess make about CDC head Thomas Frieden?
Burgess pointed out a photo of Frieden in Africa wearing a protective suit that covered him head to toe and compared it to the flimsy guideline that the CDC had issued for nurses and doctors here in America. This shows how there was a double standard between the doctors and nurses in hospitals and the CDC.
5) a) I do agree with her recommendation to have extremely sick patients rely on the nation's bio-containment facilities, but hospitals are also medical facilities, so eventually hospitals should evolve into a place to treat most diseases, including Ebola. For now, going to a bio-containment center is the best way to deal with Ebola, but hospitals should learn how to properly treat the disease as well.
b) My parents also agrees that hospitals should evolve, but bio-containment centers are the only ways to treat Ebola is well.
