The Royal Children’s Hospital (RCH) played a pivotal role in the activation of the state’s Ebola Virus Disease Response Plan over the weekend.

A one-year-old child was admitted to the RCH from Frankston Hospital with suspected ebola virus, but was cleared of having the disease after testing.

The child, who had recently returned from West Africa, was transported to the RCH Friday evening after receiving treatment for diarrhoea at Frankston Hospital.

The RCH worked closely with the Department of Health and other authorities to activate the state’s ebola response plan quickly and effectively. This involved placing the patient in a negative pressure room in intensive care, while doctors and nurses submitted blood tests and a throat swab for rapid testing at the Victorian Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory. The test came back negative within four hours, and the patient was later discharged.

RCH clinicians caring for the child wore appropriate personal protective clothing.

RCH Chief Medical Officer, Dr Peter McDougall, said the RCH and the Royal Melbourne Hospital had been planning for the possibility of an ebola virus presentation for many weeks, and this case proved the planning was robust.

“In the very unlikely situation where a child was confirmed as positive for Ebola virus, we have, fortunately, fantastic paediatric intensive care in our hospital. I’m very confident that if such a case was managed, it would be managed absolutely superbly,” Dr McDougall said.

“Naturally, when this happens for the first time, there’s considerable anxiety that we’re handling the situation properly, but…the teamwork was wonderful,” he said.

Victorian Minister for Health, the Hon David Davis MLC, praised the RCH and its state health service colleagues for successful implementation of the response plan.

“Clinicians at both hospitals, Ambulance Victoria, our public health lab and the health department ensured a well-coordinated response,” he said.