BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Officials at Massachusetts General Hospital say the initial test for Ebola on the patient admitted Tuesday has come back negative for the virus. Instead, the patient has tested positive for malaria, according to the hospital. Doctors said they would need further diagnostic testing to definitively rule out Ebola virus disease.
They have scheduled a 1:30 p.m. news conference. Click here to watch it live.
MGH officials said the patient had been undergoing routine monitoring by the Boston Public Health Commission after returning from a trip to Liberia in a non-medical capacity. The patient is in good spirits and remains in a specially prepared isolated area within the hospital, according to MGH.
According to a memo to hospital staff Tuesday night, someone who was "undergoing routine monitoring by the Boston Public Health Commission," and was also "under investigation for Ebola virus disease," was admitted to the hospital at 2 p.m. Tuesday afternoon.
That patient will remain in isolation at the hospital.
Hospital officials did not say where the patient lives or what symptoms the patient was exhibiting.
Mass. General has been preparing for months in the event a "patient with suspected Ebola" should come to the hospital.
"The individual is now in a specially prepared area within the hospital. Diagnostic testing is under way," the statement read.
The patient reportedly came into the hospital through the emergency room, which then seemingly went into lock down.
"I didn't realize it at first, but after a while I figured something was going on," said Robert Monahan, who visited Mass. General on Tuesday. "They drew the curtains and asked everyone to stay in their rooms. From that point, I heard, 'This is going to be the decontamination room.'"
Monahan was in a room with his ill father when he heard the commotion outside.
"I saw staff in the Tyvek suits, the full gear, fully covered." He said the staff remained calm throughout. This is a developing story. Stick with myfoxboston.com for more updates as they become available.
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