Ebola: 64 passengers screened at NZ border

The Ebola quarantine room set up at Middlemore Hospital. Photo / Jason Oxenham

Screening for the deadly Ebola virus at New Zealand's borders has been carried out on 64 passengers since August, but no cases have been detected, authorities say.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said almost 4500 people had died from the virus to date - nearly all of them in West Africa.

Director of Public Health Dr Darren Hunt said an expert advisory group had been set up to ensure New Zealand was as prepared for the virus as possible, but the Ministry of Health assessed the risk of Ebola arriving in the country remained very low.

On average, less than one person a day arrived in the country after having been in an Ebola-affected country, compared with more than 30 per day entering the UK, he said.

There were also no direct flights between the affected countries and New Zealand.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed 47 New Zealanders were registered as being in Ebola-affected countries -- 35 in Nigeria, six in Sierra Leone, three in Senegal, two in Liberia and one in Guinea.

Dr Hunt said Ebola-affected countries in West Africa had implemented exit screening in line with WHO recommendations and additional border screening had also been implemented here.

Anyone arriving in New Zealand who had visited West African countries affected by the virus in the past month was being screened for symptoms of the disease and possible exposure to the virus, he said.

Since screening was introduced early in August, 64 people have been screened, yet none had caused concern.

"Ebola is not easy to catch -- it is not spread through the air, it's not as infectious as the flu or measles," Dr Hunt said.

Infection required direct contact with infected body fluids such as blood or heavily contaminated objects.

The ministry was closely monitoring advice from the WHO, Dr Hunt said.

He said existing isolation facilities and infection control protocols in New Zealand hospitals were suitable for managing a suspected or confirmed case of Ebola.

Middlemore, Wellington and Christchurch Hospitals have all been designated as receiving hospitals for any patient suspected to be carrying the virus.

The bio-containment unit at Middlemore in Auckland has two negative-pressure rooms that can accommodate up to four patients and three colour-coded zones.

Heavy-duty white gowns, gloves, masks, special footwear and rolls of black tape to cover gaps in protective clothing are held in a "green zone".

Heavy doors designed to stop contaminated air escaping protect a "red zone" where infected patients would be kept.

University of Otago infectious disease expert Dr James Ussher said the likelihood of Ebola coming to New Zealand was lower than in other countries due to lower air traffic volumes.

"But New Zealand does remain at risk and the longer the outbreak, the more transmissions there are in Africa, the greater the risk of transmission to another country -- including New Zealand."

It was notable that, to date, the only confirmed case of Ebola that presented in another country, rather than having arrived from West Africa, was in the United States, Dr Ussher said.

"Despite all the transmissions going on in Africa it is still not a common event.

"I think that New Zealand is prepared ... but I think there's no doubt that, as has been demonstrated in both Dallas and in Spain, caring for these patients who actually do have infections is challenging."

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EBOLA BY THE NUMBERS

* 64 people screened at New Zealand borders since August

* 47 New Zealanders registered as being in Ebola-affected countries

* 4447 killed by the virus

* 8900 believed to be infected

* 1000 new cases identified each week over the last month

* 70 per cent death rate for the current outbreak

* 2 per cent death rate for a typical flu pandemic