After having extensive contact with Thomas Eric Duncan, the first Ebola patient to die in the United States, a Dallas health care worker has tested positive for the Ebola virus, CNN reports. On Sunday, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a preliminary test on her blood sample and confirmed that the nurse had contracted the infection. This is the first transmission of the virus in the United States and the second diagnosis in the country.
While treating Duncan at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital the nurse wore the required protective gear, including a mask, gown, gloves and a shield, but still contracted Ebola reportedly due to a breach in protocol.
The director of the CDC Tom Frieden said at a news conference on Sunday that ” there was a breach in protocol, and that breach in protocol resulted in this infection.”
The nurse is currently in stable condition. Her car and apartment will be cleaned by Hazardous materials units.