Metro

911 dispatchers forbidden from saying ‘Ebola’ on the radio

By Shawn Cohen, Jamie Schram and Laura Italiano

October 16, 2014 | 1:25am

911 dispatchers forbidden from saying ‘Ebola’ on the radio

911 dispatchers are being told to not use the word "Ebola" over the radio if it is suspected a patient might have contracted the deadly disease. Photo: Shutterstock

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City officials are so jittery about causing widespread Ebola panic that 911 dispatchers have been forbidden from dropping any “E”-bombs over the radios, The Post has learned.
An FDNY memo instructs all personnel to use more vague terms when discussing the deadly disease, which is threatening to become a global pandemic.
“At no point shall a dispatcher transmit over the radio any message containing the word ‘Ebola’ or related terminology,” according to the advisory, which was obtained by The Post.
Dispatchers instead must use the code letters “F/T,” as in Fever/Travel, to indicate that a 911 caller has a fever and a history of travel to West Africa. “Engine XXX, utilize Universal Precautions — you are responding to a Fever/Travel incident,” dispatchers are now ordered to say.
A source said the directive is meant to minimize fear of a citywide outbreak, since the emergency radio channels are closely monitored by civilian hobbyists and members of the media.
“Just like you can’t say bomb on an airplane, we can’t say ‘Ebola,’ ” said the source. “Back in the ’80s and ’90s, taking universal precautions meant someone has AIDS. And we weren’t allowed to say AIDS either.”

“Just like you can’t say bomb on an airplane, we can’t say ‘Ebola,’ ” said the source. “Back in the ’80s and ’90s, taking universal precautions meant someone has AIDS. And we weren’t allowed to say AIDS either.”

The disease has killed one man in Dallas, and two nurses who treated him contracted the disease despite taking precautionary measures. Still, officials in New York are confident that first responders are able to treat potential patients without contracting the highly contagious virus. FDNY medics who respond to at-risk patients have been told to wear polyethylene-coated paper gowns, gloves and face masks with plastic eye visors, officials said.
Responders were given a memo laying out a 19-step process for putting on and then safely removing and disposing of their protective gowns and gloves.
“We are the agency on the front lines of this — 99 percent of the jobs will be handled by us,” said Israel Miranda, head of New York’s EMS union.
The FDNY also has a dozen elite “Haztec” workers in each borough designated to deal with potential Ebola patients who are vomiting, bleeding or suffering diarrhea, sources said.
They are equipped with $2,000 in special protective gear and would provide transport to a hospital. Most patients would go to Bellevue Hospital, where up to 20 isolation rooms are available.
“We can replicate the same isolation rooms in other hospitals if needed,” said Dr. Ram Raju, the commissioner of the city’s Health and Hospitals Corp.

The directive sent to 911 dispatchers ordering them to never use the word “Ebola” in radio messages.

Blood samples will be tested by the city Health Department at its lab across the street from Bellevue, with results available within six hours, said Dr. Jay K. Varma, deputy commissioner of the department.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will do backup tests yielding results the following day, he said.
The Medical Examiner’s Office “will take jurisdiction over any confirmed or suspected Ebola death” in the city, a spokesperson said.
“We have now had about 133 calls since July concerning patients with possible Ebola symptoms,” Varma said. “And all 133 are false alarms.”
But at least one company — the city’s main supplier of body bags — is ready to pitch in should the outbreak turn into an all-out crisis.
“We have more than 100,000 bags on hand,” assured company vice president Basheer Mahar.
Last night, the Department of Education sent a letter to school principals containing Ebola information and instructions on how to deal with possible cases.
The letter said that if a student who had traveled to an Ebola-stricken nation shows symptoms, he or she should “be seen immediately by the school nurse.”
Additional reporting by Susan Edelman and Philip Messing