Chief executive John Mulder said while the risk of importation of Ebola into Bendigo Health was low, the organisation was 'like any other health service in Victoria and may eventually need to evaluate a suspected case of Ebola'.

"Staff at the Bendigo Health know what we will need to do under the Victorian Ebola Virus Disease Response Plan and I am fully confident that every effort to protect the health of the people of Loddon Mallee region will be made,'' he said.

"Using the Victorian response plan as a guide we have developed a local plan for safeguarding the health of a suspected case and of staff at Bendigo Health caring for that case.

“Should a suspected case turn up in our emergency department today, frontline clinicians know exactly what they need to do. The person would be isolated and we would immediately conduct a joint risk assessment with the Department of Health.”

Mr Mulder said the health service was fully equipped with the required personal protective equipment and was working to ensure that all relevant staff were fully trained and confident in its use. 

“Anyone caring for the person would be fully kitted out with PPE, a blood sample would be collected and securely transferred to the designated lab with the right facilities and the patient would then be transferred to either the Royal Melbourne or the Royal Children’s Hospital, depending on their age,” he said.

The Royal Melbourne Hospital is the designated facility for assessment and management of patients suspected to have a Viral Haemorrhagic Fever such as Ebola virus disease.

“Doctors and nurses are human and humans cannot be one hundred per cent meticulous one hundred per cent of the time, so we are developing ways to overcome the limitations of and pressure on individuals providing care,” Mr Mulder said

Transportation of suspected cases by ambulance would require paramedics to use personal protective equipment  which is standard issue on Victorian ambulances.

“It is important that people know the facts about Ebola,” Mr Mulder said. “The only known way to catch Ebola Virus Disease is by coming into direct contact with the blood or bodily fluids of an infected person who is showing symptoms. There has never been a documented case of Ebola transmission by air or water.”

“There have been no confirmed cases of Ebola in Australia to date, however border protection actions are in place as a first line of defence to protect against the possibility of a return traveller bringing the disease into the country.”

“Should a case arise here in Bendigo, we are as ready as we can be.”