HOSPITAL staff have been undergoing training so they are prepared if Ebola reaches East Lancashire.

East Lancashire NHS Hospitals Trust has already given training to emergency department and urgent care centre nursing and medical staff, as well as its lead clinicians, and is about to start in the laboratory and with domestic staff.

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Information posters on Ebola have also gone on display in all urgent care centres, emergency department, the medical assessment unit and ambulatory care departments, X-ray and all outpatients clinics.

Ebola virus disease is a rare but severe infection in humans and non-human primates caused by Ebola virus.

It is a filovirus that was first recognised in 1976, and has caused sporadic outbreaks since in several African countries.

So far 10,000 cases of Ebola have been recorded in the current outbreak, and up to 50 per cent of patients have died, making it the worst Ebola epidemic in history.

There is no known cure, and in an age of extensive global travel, NHS staff have been warned to be mindful and vigilant of patients visiting NHS facilities with Ebola-type symptoms.

Symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, joint and muscle pain, a sore throat, and muscle weakness. No imported case of Ebola has ever occurred in the UK, but patients who have travelled to West African countries including Sierra Leone, Guinea or Liberia could be at risk.

Staff have been warned to isolate patients who may be infected, and contact specialist infectious diseases teams.

They have been warned not to touch suspected Ebola patients, and protective equipment has been made available in the case of dealing with an Ebola patient.

Ian Stanley, (acting) executive medical director, said: “East Lancashire Hospital Trust has a contingency plan in place if there is an Ebola outbreak in the area.

“Our plan will follow the national guidelines that have come from the government and their world health organisation partners.

“Trust staff are being briefed on what they should do and are prepared to respond if necessary.”