Hemera/Thinkstock(OMAHA, Neb.) — Dr. Martin Salia, who contracted Ebola in Africa and was later flown to the United States, has died, officials with Nebraska Medical Center said.
Salia is the third patient treated for the virus at the medical center.
“It is with an extremely heavy heart that we share this news,” Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the Biocontainment Unit at Nebraska Medical Center and professor of infectious diseases at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, said in a statement.
Salia, 44, was a permanent resident in the U.S. and married to a U.S. citizen. Salia was a native of Sierra Leone.
Salia was suffering from advanced symptoms of Ebola when he arrived at the hospital Saturday, authorities said, including kidney and respiratory failure.
In a statement, the White House said, “We extend our heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of Dr. Martin Salia, who succumbed this morning to Ebola at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, despite the heroic efforts of that institution’s incredibly talented team. Dr. Salia leaves behind loved ones in the United States, his adopted homeland, and in Sierra Leone, where he was born.
“A general surgeon, Dr. Salia dedicated his life to saving others. He viewed this vocation as his calling, telling his fellow United Methodist Church members that he pursued medicine not because he wanted to, but because he firmly believed it was God’s will for him. Dr. Salia’s passing is another reminder of the human toll of this disease and of the continued imperative to tackle this epidemic on the frontlines, where Dr. Salia was engaged in his calling,” the statement added.
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