Glen Cove meeting to focus on Ebola center at hospital

North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System officials plan to hold a public meeting Wednesday night to update Glen Cove residents on preparations to treat anyone infected with Ebola.

The third floor of the system's Glen Cove Hospital is being established as a specialized disease treatment center that could handle as many as two Ebola patients, Glen Cove Mayor Reginald Spinello said at a City Council meeting Tuesday night.

"I understand it's a scary thing," Spinello said. "There's a lot of what ifs. But the fact is . . . we can have some patients, but it's nothing that we control."

The meeting is planned for 6 p.m. at the Glen Cove Mansion and Convention Center on Dosoris Way. People wishing to attend must contact the hospital to reserve a place. Space is limited to 200 people.

The treatment center would be isolated from the rest of the hospital and staffed by a volunteer team who would not treat other patients. Spinello emphasized that the disease can only be spread through direct contact with bodily fluids. The patients would be sent there by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Spinello said he was first informed Thursday that the hospital would be designated a treatment center and has plans to hold a town hall meeting on the matter.