Don't let what happened in Dallas happen here. That's the watchword at U.S. hospitals after Ebola-infected Thomas Eric Duncan was sent home from a Dallas emergency room for two days, only to return in an ambulance and then, 10 days later, die in an intensive care isolation unit. "This is my entire job" now, said Michelle Peninger, system director of infection control at Inova Health System, which has five hospitals in northern Virginia, referring to Ebola preparation. "It's all I do every day." The incident in Dallas, along with the growing epidemic in Western Africa that has killed almost 4,000, has heightened concerns at U.S. hospitals that a new Ebola patient will emerge.
In a social media landscape shaped by hashtags, algorithms, and viral posts, nurse leaders must decide: Will they let the narrative spiral, or can they adapt and join the conversation?
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