Nearly 75% of Ebola Victims are Women, Pregnancy & Ebola Needs Protocol
GREENVILLE, S.C., March 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The threat of Ebola continues as several Americans exposed to the virus are quarantined in New York, Nebraska, and Georgia. It is particularly important for women to take caution, as a startling statistic has emerged: 60 percent -75 percent of people who have contracted Ebola are women. In West Africa, this may be the direct result of traditional gender roles, as women are the primary caregivers of the sick. Ebola presents, however, a particular risk for pregnant women because pregnancy alters the immune system.
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OBHG Medical Director of Operations Dr. Rakhi Dimino remarked on the risk that this threat poses to patients in hospitals: "A patient with the Ebola virus who is pregnant, could come in contact with other pregnant patients or staff caring for pregnant women. Therefore, all L&D units need to be just as prepared as Emergency Rooms. The limited data available for pregnant women with the virus suggests the outcome may result in miscarriage, stillbirth, pregnancy-related hemorrhage, maternal death and neonatal."
As a result of these risks, Dr. Dimino's hospital in Texas has already designated a delivery room for expectant mothers with Ebola and created a series of protocols for moving the patient within the hospital to decrease risk for all other patients. "Although the likelihood of needing these protocols is small, it is of the utmost importance to prepare for a pregnant patient with suspected Ebola and run through these scenarios in any hospital with a Labor and Delivery unit. If there is a potential exposure to the Ebola virus in L&D, the results could be disastrous for our patients and their babies. In the long-term, we could lose the confidence of our future patients who may we feel we cannot protect them from infectious diseases and choose another hospital. The viability of any hospital as a business rests upon our ability to gain the confidence of our patients so that we can protect them and their babies from any potentially dangerous scenarios."
Dr. Rakhi Dimino is an obstetrician-gynecologist in Houston, Texas. She is currently employed with Ob Hospitalist Group as an OB/GYN hospitalist at Methodist Willowbrook Hospital in Houston TX. She received her medical degree from the Ohio State University College of Medicine and has been in practice for 12 years.
About Ob Hospitalist Group: Ob Hospitalist Group (OBHG) began in 2006 with a vision to elevate the quality and safety of women's healthcare by ensuring every expectant mother had the security of consistently and unconditionally seeing a physician when presenting to the Labor and Delivery department or emergency room. OBHG leads the industry in developing and managing on-site OB/GYN hospitalist programs staffed with Board Certified physicians 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In partnership with hospitals, nursing staff, physicians and hospitalists we have developed a unique, comprehensive, financially viable OB/GYN hospitalist program that serves women, newborns, and their families. For more information, please visit www.obhg.com.
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SOURCE Ob Hospitalist Group
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