Second health worker tests negative for Ebola

Photo / Michael Craig

A second healthcare worker who recently returned from Sierra Leone has tested negative for the Ebola virus.

The worker, who has just been cleared of having the virus ,was tested for it after developing minor symptoms that Health Minister Jonathan Coleman said "required the Ebola virus to be ruled out".

The unnamed person was airlifted to Wellington Hospital and was kept in one of the facility's isolation units.

Blood samples from the patient were sent to a high-security laboratory in Melbourne.

Dr Coleman said today the patient's condition had since improved and they had been discharged from Wellington Hospital.

"Laboratory testing and clinical assessment has confirmed that the patient does not have Ebola," Dr Coleman said.

"The individual will continue to self-monitor for the remainder of the 21-day period, as required for healthcare workers returning from assisting in the Ebola response in West Africa."

Last month, another healthcare worker tested negative for Ebola at Christchurch Hospital.

Dr Coleman said New Zealand was well placed to respond to such situations.

"This was demonstrated last month when a separate returning healthcare worker was tested to rule out Ebola. It is pleasing to see all the preparation paid off."

A person with Ebola is not infectious until they display symptoms.

The virus is spread by direct contact with an infected individual, and is transmitted through contact with blood or other body fluids.