Nearly two months after the first case of Ebola was reported in the United States, local health officials have a final plan should the disease — or one similarly virulent — come to the Flathead Valley.

The City-County Health Board last Thursday voted to authorize Public Health Officer Joe Russell to impose quarantine and isolation on people who are suspected to be infected or have been exposed.

“It is the intent of the board to establish a procedure that will allow the Health Officer, acting on their behalf, to initiate immediate public health control measures of isolation and/or quarantine in the event that a highly pathogenic disease is suspected or identified in Flathead County,” according to the plan.

The Health Department (and Russell and Assistant Public Health Officer Hillary Hanson) would have the authority to isolate or quarantine people who might have been exposed to a virulent pathogen such as the Ebola hemorrhagic virus.

Isolation would allow the suspected carrier of the disease to “be cared for in their homes, in hospitals or in designated health-care facilities.”

Quarantine would be more strict, putting those who “have been exposed to an infectious agent and therefore may become infectious” in a strict confinement in a designated location.

At the health board meeting where the isolation/quarantine policy was adopted, several board members expressed concerns about the effectiveness of past plans in places such as Dallas and New York City.

“Self-monitoring doesn’t work,” board member P. David Myerowitz said. “We have to balance protecting [the exposed person’s] privacy but also inform people who have been in contact.”

As the policy stands now, Russell or Hanson would likely be informed by the Centers for Disease Control if a highly pathogenic exposed person were to come to the Flathead.

The health officers would immediately notify the board of health and the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, as well as infectious disease doctors at Kalispell Regional Medical Center or North Valley Hospital.

After consulting with these sources, “the Health Officer shall issue an order establishing the most reasonable quarantine and isolation measures that are protective of the public health.”

Russell said he understood there would be concerns, but he was confident his department would handle things better than other parts of the country.

“We don’t need the New Jersey-Maine nurse fiasco,” he said. “We will have people living in Flathead County that have been in West Africa. The best way to do this is without public knowledge.”

The Health Department drew up two forms for isolation and quarantine.

“There is reason to believe that you have Ebola Virus Disease,” one form rather abruptly informs the unlucky reader. “This disease may present a serious health threat to you or others.”

The two forms are very similar, but the more drastic quarantine form uses more bold-face type to get its point across.

At Kalispell Regional Medical Center, an Ebola protocol facility has been set up in the lightly used former outpatient and rehabilitation wing.

The wing has one entrance from the outside, one from the inside and has a separate air ventilation system from the rest of the hospital.

Dr. Jeffrey Tjaden, an infectious disease specialist for Kalispell Regional Healthcare, said preparations for Ebola at the hospital have kept everyone busy.

“We’ve trained all E.R. nurses and physicians along with critical care and myself as a specialist,” he said.

The hospital protocol involves two adjoining rooms with an antechamber in between. The separation allows for a “dirty room,” a disinfecting room and a “clean room.” Medical waste barrels are in each room and will be incinerated after use. Proper protective gear and procedure are vital for a successful management of the disease, he said.

Even more important than being prepared now is helping the countries stricken by the deadly disease, he said.

“The big need is not here but in Africa. This is just the tip of the iceberg,” Tjaden said. “We need to control it there and support people who take care and volunteer over there. There have been about 10,000 cases and we’ve already seen a few come to the United States. If it gets to a million, like the [World Health Organization] estimates, we’ll see a lot more here. We have to take care of it now.”

While Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea and Mali fight cases there, American health-care workers prepare for the disease and others like it now. Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome is one Tjaden said has equally high mortality rates but none of the hype of Ebola.

Allison Meilicke, the public information officer at Kalispell Regional, said hopefully Ebola will never come to Montana, much less to the Flathead.

“But it is good to keep on our toes,” she said. “We are a regional medical center and people expect us to be ready.”

Reporter Ryan Murray may be reached at 758-4436 or by email at rmurray@dailyinterlake.com.