An Ontario patient has been isolated and is being tested for Ebola after going to a hospital in the Niagara Region with flu-like symptoms. The patient had returned from West Africa.
"We are taking every precaution and isolating the patient per the best practice protocols, with advice from infectious disease experts and public health," Niagara Health System chief of staff and executive vice president Dr. Tom Stewart said in a statement. "On the whole, our analysis indicates this situation is very low-risk."
Stewart added the Ministry of Health has done a great job preparing hospitals for potential Ebola cases.
"Our goal in this case is to ensure this individual receives great care while protecting our staff and the public," said Stewart. "The situation here is different than in West Africa because of our infrastructure. We have a brand-new facility with negative pressure rooms and isolation abilities, and well-trained and well-prepared staff."
On Saturday, a girl placed in precautionary isolation at an Ottawa-area hospital tested negative for the Ebola virus . She was in isolation for a little more than a day as doctors waited for blood samples to be tested by the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg.
In recent weeks, one patient at a Montreal hospital, and one at a Brampton, Ont., hospital have both tested negative for Ebola.
The current Ebola outbreak, which is the deadliest ever, has killed more than 1,500 people in West Africa, according to the World Health Organization.
