Santa Cruz County 911 dispatchers will begin asking Ebola-related questions

Ebola precautions are getting more serious in Santa Cruz County, as public health officials take steps to protect the Central Coast. Next week 911 dispatchers will start asking callers if they’ve recently traveled to one of three “hot zones” currently dealing with an outbreak.

Santa Cruz Regional 911 said Monday it will start asking questions after units have been dispatched to figure out whether the person is at risk of having Ebola. That way, paramedics will be prepared before they show up to the emergency room.

“The paramedic will question the patient about travel history and whether or not the person is suffering from one of the symptoms of Ebola,” said Celia Barry with the Santa Cruz County Emergency Services.

Emergency responders said they’re taking necessary steps to ensure the public isn’t put at risk, if a patient has recently traveled to Guinea, Sierra Leone or Liberia. California is now under risk-based quarantine procedures to treat potential patients fairly and consistently. This comes after governors in several states, including New York and New Jersey, imposed mandatory quarantine guidelines.

“With Ebola kind of expanding to the United States, we as a county wanted to coordinate all our efforts for preparedness,” said Lisa Hernandez with the Santa Cruz County Department of Public Health.

Now all counties are following a risk-based quarantine order with specific guidelines.

“There will be an entire kit that will be inserted inside the rig, that will provide a plastic covering for the patient,” Barry said.

Santa Cruz Regional 911 said the new procedure will ensure the patient, the public and emergency responders are all protected.

Patients who haven’t recently traveled to West Africa will not have to answer any additional questions related to Ebola.