Ebola Infection 'Linked To Visor'

A Lanarkshire nurse who contracted Ebola while working in Sierra Leone possibly caught the virus by wearing a visor and not goggles, an investigation has suggested.

The report by Save the Children said it cannot be completely certain how Pauline Cafferkey contracted Ebola but said both pieces of equipment are equally safe''.

The nurse, from Cambuslang, had volunteered with the charity at the Ebola Treatment Centre (ETC) in Kerry Town before returning to the UK in December.

She spent more than three weeks in a London hospital where she was critically ill for a time, but was released earlier this month after making a full recovery.

Save the Children published the findings of an independent review into the possible causes of how the 39-year-old caught the virus.

The report said both visors and goggles are safe but there are slight differences in the type of clothing worn with each and in the protocols for putting them on and removing them. Justin Forsyth, the charity's chief executive, said: We will never be 100% sure how Pauline contracted Ebola, but the independent panel found that it is most likely, though not conclusive, she acquired her illness while working at the Ebola Treatment Centre at Kerry Town in Sierra Leone. It thought it unlikely that Pauline contracted the disease while in the local community.

The panel found that the Save the Children procedures, equipment and protocols at the ETC are safe and meet all required standards and that training is of a good standard.

Working under such intense and challenging conditions, however, cannot be without risk. Although there is no conclusive evidence, the panel suggests that Pauline's use of a visor, within a context geared to the use of goggles, was the most likely cause of her contracting Ebola.''

He added: Both visors - used by UK Ministry of Defence staff and recommended by the World Health Organisation - and goggles, which are used by Save the Children after consultation with Medecins Sans Frontieres, are safe but there are slight differences in the clothing used with each and the protocols for putting the equipment on and taking it off.

The panel found that where Save the Children-approved protocols may not have been followed, or where prescribed equipment was not used, they weren't picked up immediately and therefore action might not have been taken quickly to correct them.

Lessons have already been learned and as a result of the findings, we have further tightened our protocols and procedures.''

Ms Cafferkey was diagnosed with Ebola after returning to Glasgow and was initially admitted to the city's Gartnavel Hospital on December 29, before being transferred to the Royal Free Hospital in London the following day.

She flew back to the UK via Casablanca in Morocco. Her temperature was tested seven times before she flew from Heathrow to Glasgow and she was cleared to travel.

Ms Cafferkey said she did not feel unwell until she went to bed that evening and, after becoming feverish, she followed advice given to her at Heathrow to contact local services.

After a blood sample tested positive for Ebola, she was transferred from Glasgow to London where she was treated with convalescent plasma taken from the blood of recovered European patients and the experimental anti-viral drug ZMabb, which is not the same as ZMapp, which was used to treat British nurse William Pooley.

Speaking after she was discharged from hospital, Ms Cafferkey said she was happy to be alive'' and thanked theamazing'' medical staff who treated her.

Mr Forsyth added: I am delighted for Pauline Cafferkey and her family that she has fully recovered from Ebola. Pauline is a dedicated humanitarian who worked tirelessly and selflessly in the fight against Ebola.''

A panel was convened at the beginning of January by Save the Children to review the case, chaired by a senior official from Public Health England.

In its summary findings it said the nurse had undergone training in the UK and initially went to work for another non-governmental organisation in a different treatment centre.

She was re-deployed after two weeks to the Save the Children centre where she was given further training in the charity's protocols but was not able to use the standard protective goggles used there because she could not get them to fit properly'', according to the report.

It said she had acquired a visor which was the same as the one used in her initial training and similar to the one she had worn at the other centre but that was not used by Save the Children.

The report said both visors and goggles are equally safe'' but there areslight differences'' in the clothing worn with each and the protocols for putting the equipment on and off. Among three key recommendations made by the panel was that the assurance and governance systems at the ETC must be consistently applied and reviewed to ensure that all protocols and policies are understood and adhered to''.

The report said: The panel notes that Save the Children had already embarked on a process to strengthen weaknesses in supervision that have been identified.

Revision of protocols and guidance is also under way to ensure that there is consistency between different policies and that these are simpler and clearer.''