Salia is a general surgeon who had been working at Kissy United Methodist Hospital in the Sierra Leone capital of Freetown. Patients, including mothers who hours earlier had given birth, fled from the 60-bed hospital after news of the Ebola case emerged, United Methodist News reported.
A Sierra Leone citizen, the 44-year-old lives in Maryland and is a permanent U.S. resident, according to a person in the United States with direct knowledge of the situation. The person was not authorized to release the information and spoke on condition of anonymity.
His wife, Isatu Salia, said in a telephone interview Friday evening that she had spoken with her husband by phone earlier in the day and that his voice sounded weak and shaky. But he told his wife of more than 20 years "I love you" in a steady voice.
Isatu Salia said she plans to go to Nebraska, where he will be treated, because she believes her presence will make a difference for her husband, whom she called "caring" and "hardworking."
Salia received his surgical training from a group called the Pan African Academy of Christian Surgeons, which seeks to train African doctors on a level comparable to training they would receive in the U.S., said Richard Toupin, of Auburn, Indiana, a fellow medical missionary.
"He is one of the best-trained surgeons in his country," Toupin said. "He is a very competent surgeon."
Bruce Steffes, executive director of PAACS, said Salia graduated from the surgical training program in 2008. The training includes a requirement to practice in Africa for four years after completion. As a result, Steffes said, Salia was free to practice anywhere he wanted, but elected to stay in Sierra Leone, where the need for surgeons is immense.
"People like Martin are just absolutely dedicated, highly trained ... and doing their best in absolutely horrifying conditions," Steffes said.
Jeff Bleijerveld, director of global ministries for the United Brethren in Christ church, said he last talked to Salia in February 2013, when they met to discuss planning for a hospital in the southern part of Sierra Leone. He recalled watching Salia perform a hernia surgery on a young boy, assisted by a handyman who was not actually a doctor. He recalled Salia leading the surgical team in prayer before the operation.
The United Brethren played an early role in Salia's medical training.
"He's a quiet leader," Bleijerveld said. "Our people still have a real affection for him."
The doctor will be the third Ebola patient at the Omaha hospital and the 10th person with Ebola to be treated in the U.S. The last, Dr. Craig Spencer, was released from a New York hospital on Tuesday.
SOURCE wsbtv
