Patient tests negative for Ebola after suspected case in British hospital

A patient has tested negative for Ebola after a suspected case was discovered at a hospital in Scotland.

A ward of the hospital in Glasgow was said to have been partially closed due to the suspected case of the virus on Tuesday.

The patient is understood to have arrived at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital's acute receiving unit during the early hours of the morning.

Standard infection prevention control procedures were in place at the hospital and the risk to the public was low, health officials said.

Tests were caried out to confirm whether the individual contracted the disease, but late on Tuesday night it emerged the patient was not infected.

Public Health Scotland said there are currently no confirmed cases of Ebola in Scotland.

Outbreaks of Ebola have been recorded in both the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and neighbouring Uganda.

There have been almost 700 confirmed cases of bundibugyo Ebola virus, the majority of which are in DRC.

Some 138 people have died, including two in Uganda, while one case has been discovered in France.

If confirmed, it would have been the first case in the UK since the outbreak in DRC was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Public Health Scotland confirmed there are "well established protocols for assessing and testing travellers arriving in the UK from areas affected by Ebola".

A spokesperson for the agency said: "There are currently no confirmed cases of Ebola in Scotland and the risk to the general public remains low.

"Public Health Scotland is working closely with UKHSA [UK Health Security Agency], to assess routes by which travellers may enter the UK from affected countries.

"The risk from people arriving in the UK from affected areas is low and the NHS has safe procedures in place for detecting and managing any such cases."

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The statement added: "Where required, contact tracing will occur and contacts may undergo clinical assessment and precautionary testing.

"The UKHSA Returning Workers Scheme [RWS] which aims to protect and monitor the health of those who may travel from the UK to affected areas for their work, has been activated.

"Organisations deploying workers to affected areas where they may be exposed to Ebola through their work, should register those workers with the scheme."

Diseases "are not restricted by borders" and it is "vital" the UK works with international partners to protect global health, officials have stressed.

The UK has pledged up to £21m to support the local response to Ebola in DRC, helping to protect frontline workers and vulnerable communities.

Experts from the UK Public Health Rapid Support Team include seven specialists from the UKHSA and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

Four are to be based in the eastern DRC to support WHO field operations, while one will join the WHO country office in the capital Kinshasa.

An epidemiologist will also be sent to the Republic of Congo to support the wider response in the region.

(c) Sky News 2026: Patient tests negative for Ebola after suspected case in British hospital