Sydney health authorities brace for Australian Ebola outbreak

Sydney's Westmead Hospital is preparing for a potential outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus by conducting drills and setting up treatment areas.

Staff have undergone specialised training on how to best protect themselves if the virus reaches Australia.

While the risk of an outbreak in Australia is deemed unlikely, the hospital's Professor Lyn Gilbert said there was still a lot of anxiety about Ebola.

"We need to take that into account and manage those patients appropriately," she said.

The hospital has also set up an isolation room, complete with ventilation and waste disposal systems, to allow treatment for infected patients.

Due to Australia's preparation, medical experts predict a patient infected here would have a better than 50 percent chance of survival.