Dr. Rick Sacra, who recently contracted Ebola while treating patients in Liberia, is expected to arrive in Nebraska for treatment on Friday.
Dr. Rick Sacra, 51, who had been serving Ebola patients in Liberia through the mission organization SIM, recently contracted Ebola, and is heading to the Nebraska Medical Center, located in Omaha, for treatment. His expected arrival is Friday morning, and will be treated in the medical center's Biocontainment Patient Care Unit.
"Rick was receiving excellent care from our SIM/ELWA staff in Liberia at our Ebola 2 Care Center," Bruce Johnson, the president of SIM USA said. "They all love and admire him deeply. However, the Nebraska Medical Center provides advanced monitoring equipment and wider availability of treatment options."
Debbie Sacra, Rick Sacra's wife, said that the doctor who was treating Sacra in Liberia said he was "in very good spirits" when he boarded the plane to the U.S.
"We are really encouraged by that news and looking forward to reuniting with him," she said.
"It took an exceptional effort across many organizations to make this happen," Johnson added. "We particularly thank the U.S. Department of State and its many agencies and the Nebraska Medical Center."
Jeffrey Gold, the chancellor of the Nebraska Medical Center, said with assurance that the hospital's facilities will maintain protection for the staff and other patients.
"Not only will [Sacra] receive world-class care, but all of our patient, students, faculty, and staff will be completely protected and safe," he explained.
Debbie Sacra expressed her confidence in the Lord in the midst of her husband's illness.
"Our faith is in God's concern and attention most of all," she said.
She further emphasized the need for aid in West Africa, saying that the situation is "desperate." She quoted her husband, who wrote in letters to his colleagues, "This epidemic is a wildfire about to rage out of control."
Sacra is the third American missionary to have contracted Ebola while treating patients in Liberia, following the cases of Nancy Writebol, who was also serving in Liberia through SIM, and Kent Brantly, who had been working with SIM through a different mission organization called Samaritan's Purse. Both Writebol and Brantly received medical care in Emory University, and recently fully recovered.
