MOSCOW, October 9 (RIA Novosti) – Sue-Ellen Kovack, an Australian nurse who had been working in Sierra Leone with Ebola victims, is being assessed for a possible Ebola infection after she has developed a fever, The Australian reports on Thursday.
Kovack, 57, worked with the Red Cross in Sierra Leone treating Ebola victims. As a precaution, the nurse has been under quarantine since she returned home to Cairns, Australia on October 4. Today, Kovack was admitted into hospital after she developed a “low-grade fever”, Russia Today News Agency said.
Kovack’s blood samples were taken and sent to Brisbane for testing.
“There is the potential there so that’s why we’re treating this so seriously”, said Queensland state chief health officer Jeanette Young, as quoted by Irish RTE.
“We don’t know whether she has that but she’s been exposed to people with the disease while working in Sierra Leone and she now has a low-grade fever”, Young added, quoted by RTE.
Her test results are expected back tonight or tomorrow morning [Australian time], with doctors on standby.
There are no concerns for passengers who were on a plane with Kovack, as she did not have any symptoms at all when she was flying back to Australia, Young said, according to The Australian.
The Ebola outbreak in West Africa has so far killed 3,857 people, according to the latest data from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
