# Previously anonymous U.S. Ebola patient comes forward (there's more to the story) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 30, 2019, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/previously-anonymous-u-s-ebola-patient-comes-forward-theres-more-to-the-story/845579 "2019-12-30T03:51:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 3\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2019, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/previously-anonymous-u-s-ebola-patient-comes-forward-theres-more-to-the-story/845579/1 "2019-12-30T03:51:59Z")
In early 2015, as the west African Ebola outbreak was fizzling out, an unidentified American was medevaced to the National Institutes of Health facility outside Washington, DC where his main physician, Dr. Anthony Fauci, later said this person was the sickest patient he ever treated who left the hospital alive. Preston Gorman PA-C, age 38, has revealed his identity for the first time since returning from Africa. In short, he made a near-complete physical recovery, but the psychological recovery from the whole experience has been another story altogether. He had a history of depression in the past, and this coupled with very severe PTSD has led to greater disruptions in his life than the virus itself ever did. I posted this story on another board, and one poster who had been an ICU nurse for many years said that this aspect of critical care has not had enough discussion or research. It’s long been known that people who undergo open heart surgery have a very high rate of post-surgical depression that can last for months. > **[An Ebola patient treated in the U.S. chose to remain anonymous. Now he’s...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/an-ebola-patient-treated-in-the-us-chose-to-remain-anonymous-now-hes-telling-his-story/2019/12/27/c8b6de6a-04a1-11ea-8292-c46ee8cb3dce_story.html)** > > Years of disabling PTSD followed Preston Gorman’s unlikely survival after he contracted the fearsome disease in Sierra Leone. ---
**Author:** ![nelliebly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nelliebly/32/5422_2.png) [@nelliebly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nelliebly)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2019, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/previously-anonymous-u-s-ebola-patient-comes-forward-theres-more-to-the-story/845579/2 "2019-12-30T04:51:05Z")
Very interesting. Too little attention has been paid to the emotional status of those who’ve survived critical illnesses. Thanks for posting this. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2019, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/previously-anonymous-u-s-ebola-patient-comes-forward-theres-more-to-the-story/845579/3 "2019-12-30T09:22:33Z")
There is some discussion of medical-induced PTSD in the professions, and some cites can be found on-line. I did a DuckDuckGo search for the words: ICU and PTSD and found many hits. Here are two examples: [Psychological intervention to prevent ICU-related PTSD: who, when and for how long?](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3219322/) > [@](#): > > **Abstract** > > Experiencing treatment on a modern intensive care unit (ICU) is a potentially traumatic event. People who experience traumatic events have an increased risk of depression, anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Extended follow-up has confirmed that many patients suffer physical and psychological consequences of the ICU treatment up to 12 months after hospital discharge. PTSD in particular has become increasingly relevant in both the immediate and longer-term follow-up care of these patients. The extent to which the consequences of critical illness and the treatments received in the ICU contribute to the development of PTSD is poorly understood and more rigorous studies are needed. Understanding the factors associated with a poor psychological recovery after critical illness is essential to generate models of causality and prognosis, and to guide the delivery of effective, timely interventions. [ICU Hospitalization Tied To PTSD](https://psychcentral.com/news/2015/04/21/icu-hospitalization-tied-to-ptsd/83748.html) Seems like most of this discussion I’ve seen focuses on the unpleasantness of the ICU experience, rather than the unpleasantness of the disease/injury itself, leading to post-treatment depression, anxiety, and PTSD.