Ebola in the UK: Suspected case in Edinburgh while Australian woman airlifted to UK
A woman in Edinburgh is being tested for Ebola, having recently returned from west Africa.
After developing a fever on Thursday, she was admitted to the Western General Hospital in the Scottish capital and is now being kept there in an isolation unit.
Melanie Johnson, Director of Unscheduled Care at NHS Lothian, said: "A patient who recently returned to Scotland from west Africa has been admitted to our Regional Infectious Diseases Unit (RIDU) at the Western General Hospital after they reported a raised temperature.
"As a precautionary measure, and in line with agreed procedures, the patient will be screened for possible infections and will be kept in isolation.
"We have robust systems in place to manage patients with suspected infectious diseases and follow agreed and tested national guidelines."
The suspected case comes just a day after a woman was tested for the virus at a hospital in Northampton, but the results came back negative.
Australian airlift
Meanwhile, an Australian nurse who was treating Ebola patients in west Africa has been airlifted to the UK. She was treating patients at the Australian-run Aspen Medical clinic in Sierra Leone.
According to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the risk she has contracted the disease is low but the evacuation was a precautionary measure after she came into possible contact with the virus.
Australian foreign Minister Julie Bishop said she was "concerned" for the woman's welfare.
"I thank the UK government and health authorities for their cooperation and support in this matter," she said in a statement.
"I am concerned for the welfare of the Australian nurse and acknowledge the work of all the Aspen Medical staff delivering Australia's Ebola contribution in Sierra Leone."
Since the Ebola outbreak started in west Africa December 2013, over 7,000 people have been killed by the disease.
There is currently no known cure or vaccine, but GSK and Johnson & Johnson are both in the process of speeding up human trials of experimental vaccines.