Ebola nurse ‘may have concealed illness’
THE nurse who became the first Briton to be diagnosed with Ebola in the UK faces disciplinary action over claims she concealed being unwell when she returned from Africa.
Pauline Cafferkey – a cousin of former Ireland goalkeeper Packie Bonner – spent almost a month in an isolation unit in London earlier this year while her life hung in the balance.
She is one of five medics whose ‘fitness to practice’ is being assessed by regulators. Accord- ing to one unsubstantiated report, a temperature test showed that Ms Cafferkey was over the limit – and others present were aware of it – but the result was not reported.
If any of the five are judged to have broken professional standards, they could be ‘struck off’. However, this is unlikely given their life-saving efforts in Africa. The investigation is understood to centre on claims that signs of Ms Cafferkey’s illness were ignored before she flew back from Sierra Leone to Scotland, potentially placing fellow passengers at risk.
The nurse, who had spent three weeks working for Save The Children at an ebola treatment centre, was diagnosed on her return to Glasgow in December.
According to reports at the time, she complained of feeling ill when she landed at Heathrow but, despite having her temperature tested seven times, she was cleared to fly on to Scotland.
When Ms Cafferkey, 39, became feverish, she was transferred to the Royal Free Hospital, London.
After being treated with blood plasma from an ebola survivor and an experimental new drug she made a full recovery.
Last night, the British Nursing And Midwifery Council and the General Medical Council confirmed they were investigating allegations about the conduct of three nurses and two doctors but would not comment further.