Dr. Kent Brantly was the first person to be treated for Ebola on American soil in 2014.
DALLAS — An American doctor on a medical mission trip to Africa has contracted Ebola, in a growing outbreak that now declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization.
One man who used to practice medicine in Fort Worth knows exactly what that newly diagnosed doctor is going through.
Because he went through it, too.
“My heart sank when I heard that news,” Dr. Kent Brantly told WFAA on Monday. “I was reminded of all the people who went to such great lengths to help me when I was sick.”
Brantly worked for JPS Hospital in Fort Worth, but in 2014 while on a medical mission with Samaritan’s Purse in the West African nation of Liberia he contracted Ebola.
He was evacuated to Emory Hospital in Atlanta and became the first person to ever be treated for the virus on American soil.
“It’s a really scary and lonely thing to be that sick, but also to know it’s Ebola,” he said.
Serge, an international Christian mission organization, confirmed Dr. Peter Stafford is the American medical missionary now being treated.
“I want the Stafford family to know they are not alone. There are lots and lots of people praying for them and trying to help them,” Brantly said. “I’m praying he can find some comfort and peace, and that he makes a full recovery.”
Weeks after his arrival at Emory, Brantly was fully cleared of the virus.
He addressed the media standing with the medical team who cared for him and called his recovery “a direct answer to thousands and thousands of prayers.”
The West African outbreak that infected Brantly was one of the worst in history.
It was considered an epidemic. More than 11,000 people died.
The latest outbreak in East Africa is of growing concern.
And Brantly wants Americans to respond with compassion.
“Ebola evokes a lot of fear and rightfully so, it’s a terrible illness. But we can’t allow it to make us afraid of other people,” he said.
“There’s still no reason for Americans to be afraid of this outbreak,” he said. “They need to remember we live in a nation of great wealth and opportunity. We have some of the best care here, and we need to use those blessings to help other people.”
Brantly no longer lives in Texas, but he still works for a Texas-based Christian mission organization.
“The United States and the nations of the world need to come together to support the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda and South Sudan to bring an end to this outbreak before it spreads any further,” he said.