Texas Health Worker Tests Positive for Ebola

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed Sunday that a Texas health worker who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the first Ebola patient diagnosed in the U.S., has tested positive for the virus. 

This is the first known case of the disease being contracted in the U.S. and the second diagnosis in the country.

Duncan, who had been undergoing treatment at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, died Wednesday.

The health worker, a woman who was not identified by officials, wore full protective gear while treating Duncan, officials said. She is in a stable condition in an isolation ward at the Texas Health Presbyterian hospital. President Obama has asked the CDC to act fast in investigating the incident.

CDC Director Thomas Friedman said that the diagnosis of the health worker showed that there had been a clear breach of safety protocol during the treatment of Duncan at the hospital.

"We're deeply concerned about this new development," Frieden said on CBS. "I think the fact that we don't know of a breach in protocol is concerning because clearly there was a breach in protocol. We have the ability to prevent the spread of Ebola by caring safely for patients," he said, reports The Guardian.

 Freiden said that officials will closely monitor any worker who had or may have had close contact with Duncan. The CDC will also investigate how the workers took off the protective gear as removing it wrongly can result in contamination.

Two other parameters that investigators will look into are dialysis and intubation. Intubation is the insertion of a breathing tube in the respiratory passage of the patient. Both the procedures if done improperly have the potential to spread the virus.

Dr. David Lakey, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services said that they had been preparing for the possibility of a second Ebola case diagnosed in the U.S. 

"We are broadening our team in Dallas and working with extreme diligence to prevent further spread," he said, reports the Associated Press.