Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Independent)
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167. To ask the Minister for Health the measures he has taken and will be taking to prevent an outbreak of Ebola in Ireland; his views that this very serious contagious disease is being given the priority it deserves; and the assistance he and the Government are providing to the Governments of West Africa to contain and eliminate the disease [39630/14]

Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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171. To ask the Minister for Health if the Irish health service is prepared for an outbreak of Ebola; if so, the plans in place; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39661/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 167 and 171 together.

The Management of Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers in Ireland(VHF) of which Ebola is one form is the national guidelines for the management of any case of VHF, including Ebola, in Ireland. They were published by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) in 2012. Parts of this guidance have been updated in light of the recent Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa.

The key elements to the guidelines include:

- the need for vigilance in considering the possibility of VHF in a person with a fever who has recently returned (within 21 days) from travel to an endemic area;

- the institution of appropriate infection control measures if a case is suspected;

- rapid testing and diagnosis of the case; and

- the management of his/her contacts.

Given appropriate infection control measures, an outbreak with extensive community transmission is extremely unlikely.

Following the declaration of the Ebola outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern on 8 August 2014, a number of additional actions in relation to guidance, communications and transport were put in place, beyond those already in existence.

Extensive guidance together with appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is available for hospital clinicians, paramedical staff, general practitioners and other healthcare workers, to enable rapid identification of suspected Ebola patients, in other settings, and their urgent management. There is also extensive guidance on the necessary steps that staff must take to ensure that they protect themselves and other patients.

Healthcare staff in the National Isolation Unit (NIU) and hospitals around the country have received information and advice on identification and management of EVD. In addition, staff in the NIU have received specific training in the use of the appropriate PPE to be used in the management of a suspected EVD patient.

Advice for airport and port managers that had been developed was circulated to all relevant stakeholders. This information was posted on the HPSC website. The guidance document, Update for Airport Managers and Airlines on Ebola Virus Disease was posted on 22 August 2014 and the guidance document Update for Port Managers and Ferry Companies on Ebola Virus Diseasewas posted on 5 September 2014.

Posters (in English, French and Irish) - Returning from West Africa? Important information about Ebola– were printed and distributed to all Airports and the main designated Seaports. They have been placed in prominent positions in full line of sight of all arriving passengers/crews in the arrivals areas of these locations.

My colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has responsibility for overseas development. Ireland's total contribution to the Ebola response, through a range of different supports, stands at €2.5 million. This includes €1.1 million for International Medical Corps (IMC) to scale up treatment facilities in both Liberia and Sierra Leone and €1 million for organisations working directly on the Ebola response in Sierra Leone and Liberia, including Concern Worldwide, Goal, World Vision Ireland and UNICEF. It includes 42 tonnes worth of practical equipment which Irish Aid has dispatched through its Rapid Response Initiative.

My Department continues to work closely with the HSE, the WHO, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the EU Commission, Member States and other partners.