In the evening of December 5, 2014, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC) received a report of suspected Ebola case in a 19-year-old Taiwanese man from Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital. On December 6, the laboratory test result showed the patient is negative for the Ebola virus. On the same day, a teleconference was convened at 1:30pm and attended by the Ministry of Health and Welfare Deputy Minister Lin Tzou-yen, the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control Director-General Kuo Hsu-sung and several staff members, the Communicable Disease Control Network Regional Commanding Officer for the Kao-Ping Area Chen Yao-shen, the Department of Health of the Kaohsiung City Government Deputy Director Cheng Ming-Lun, and Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital Deputy Superintendent to discuss about the suspected case. After a detailed and thorough discussion, infection of the Ebola virus was eliminated from the case.

Taiwan CDC announced that the patient did not travel overseas and consume bat meat as he earlier claimed. According to Article 31 of the Communicable Disease Control Act: “Medical care institutions shall, when visited by patients seeking medical treatment, inquire about the patients’ medical history, medical records, history of contact, travel history, and other matters related to communicable diseases; patients or their families shall make a factual report without any concealment”. However, when a patient makes false travel history that led to a false alarm, he/she is in violation of Item 1 of Paragraph 1 of Article 69 and is subject to a fine of NT$ 10,000 up to NT$ 150,000.

Taiwan CDC once again advises travelers to follow its “Two Don’ts and One Do” advice in protecting themselves against Ebola: (1) Do not travel to Ebola-affected areas in West Africa; if you must travel to an area with an Ebola outbreak, avoid contact with and consumption of wild animals such as fruit bats and primates, (2) Do not visit hospitals or have direct contact with patients, and (3) Pay attention to personal hygiene and take preventive measures such as washing hands frequently and wear a mask when coughing. In addition, travelers are urged to monitor their own health for 21 days after their return to Taiwan. If symptoms such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea or rash develop, please call the toll-free hotline 1922(or 0800-001922) and voluntarily inform the doctor of any recent travel and exposure history to facilitate diagnosis and treatment. On the other hand, physicians are advised to stay vigilant for suspected cases, inquire about such patients’ travel and exposure history, and notify the health authority immediately of any suspected cases to facilitate implementation of subsequent measures such as case reporting, specimen collection, isolation of patients, and placing contacts in quarantine in order to prevent further transmission of the disease. Furthermore, healthcare workers are urged to stay alert, don on appropriate personal equipment while attending to patients because initial signs and symptoms are atypical of Ebola, and follow infection control and prevention guidelines such as washing hand frequently, paying attention to respiratory hygiene, avoiding splashing of body fluids. For more information, please visit the Taiwan CDC’s website at: www.cdc.gov.tw or call the toll-free Communicable Disease Reporting and Consultation Hotline, 1922 (or 0800-001922).