In what seems to confirm early reports that the United States health system was unprepared for Ebola, Dallas nurse Amber Vinson said she received only a "crash-course education" on how to treat the disease. Vinson and fellow nurse Nina Pham were assigned to care for the country's first Ebola patient, Thomas Eric Duncan, and both contracted the disease as a result.
In an interview with People, Vinson said she and Pham were given quick instructions on how to use their protective gear the same day the two were assigned to care for Duncan. "The entire time I was checking my temperature and hoping I didn't have a fever or any symptoms," she said.
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