While combating the highly infectious Ebola virus disease
(EVD) outbreak in West Africa, aid workers and other visitors have been
inadvertently exposed and contracting the virus. In 2014, a number of infected
individuals were evacuated from Africa and returned to the United States for
treatment. The Nebraska Biocontainment Unit (NBU) was one of the several
receiving hospitals for these patients. The NBU and Omaha Fire Department’s
emergency medical services coordinated patient transportation from the airport
to the high-level isolation unit. Following patient admission into this unit,
biocontainment staff members relocated the ambulance to an isolated,
controlled-access area to be decontaminated. All surfaces in the cab and
patient compartment were thoroughly wiped with bleach solution. Then, as a
final disinfection step, the back of the ambulance was exposed to ultraviolet
light.
Ultraviolet light is a specific part of the electromagnetic
spectrum of light that offers bactericidal effects. It is the wavelengths in
the UV-C spectrum, which offer the greatest germicidal potential. UV-C provides
a dry, chemical-free, and residue-free method of disinfection effective against
bacteria, viruses, fungi and spores. For this reason, ultraviolet light
disinfection was not only used in the ambulances, but as the final step in
decontaminating medical equipment, patients’ rooms, and bathrooms after
patients were discharged. Acknowledging the known limitations that UV-C only
disinfects the areas light can reach, the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit used
four ClorDiSys Torch systems in tandem to ensure the proper exposure was
achieved to inactivate the Ebola virus.
Learn more about ClorDiSys Solutions’ Torch here.
