DW works at the local hospital here, and just thought you might be interested what precautions they are taking in light of the outbreak.

Universal precautions have, of course, been in place for many years, but in addition to those, the hospital has been conducting training sessions, per CDC recommendations, to all employees regarding what symptoms a patient infected with the virus may present with, and what additional precautions need to be taken if a patient presents with said symptoms, including:

- reduce exposure time to patient
- disposable gown, shoe and leg coverings (i.e. so that they can be easily and properly disposed of after contact with the patient)
- full face shield (additional protection from any bodily fluids such as projectile vomit or spurting blood)
- double gloves (although gloves are part of universal precautions and would already be worn by nurses and other personnel coming in direct contact with said patient, gloves are something that ALL other support employees such as social workers, supervisors and janitorial staff would also be required to wear)
- all equipment used for the patient is dedicated and not to be used elsewhere
- limited use of sharps and other aerosol treatments (such as breathing treatments)

I'm sure this is just scratching the surface of other precautions they may be taking, such as any emergency planning in case of a widespread area outbreak with multiple cases, or planning for isolation units in case of said outbreak.

If i find out about any additional precautions they are taking I'll be sure to let you know.