UPDATE: A humanitarian group says a British Columbia doctor who recently returned from a trip to West Africa to fight a deadly Ebola outbreak is not under any kind of quarantine, contrary to initial reports.
As two of his colleagues fight for their lives, a B.C.-based doctor who went to West Africa to help battle a deadly Ebola outbreak has quarantined himself at home as a precaution.
Dr. Azaria Marthyman took leave from his medical practice in Victoria, B.C. to serve with evangelical Christian group Samaritan’s Purse in Liberia. There, two of his fellow workers contracted the virus.
Marthyman has not tested positive, but has chosen a self-imposed quarantine just to be safe, reports CTV News.
“Azaria is symptom-free right now and there is no chance of being contagious with Ebola if you are not exhibiting symptoms,” Melissa Strickland, a spokeswoman for Samaritan’s Purse, told the outlet.
American Dr. Kent Brantly and missionary Nancy Writebol, both with Samaritan's Purse, are undergoing intensive treatment in isolation in Liberia.
There is no known cure for the deadly disease. Ebola is transmitted from animals to people, and then passes between humans through close contact with blood, organs, or other bodily fluids, according to the World Health Organization. Initial symptoms include sudden onset of fever, muscle pain, intense weakness, sore throat, and headache.
Sierra Leone's top Ebola doctor Sheik Umar Khan died from the virus on Tuesday.
In a Samaritan's Purse blog post last week, Marthyman, who declined an interview with CBC News, wrote about what it was like to say goodbye to Liberia:
After a short time at the Samaritan’s Purse Liberia office headquarters, I went over to the expanded ELWA Case Management Center. A young boy was sitting on a chair quietly observing the activities around him. I recognized his features and asked if his name is William. William was my first Ebola patient here and now I have the privilege of interacting with him again before I leave Liberia. William now needs a home to go to. He does not have any family to care for him and will be under the ministry’s care. I pray that he will have a loving home to go to. Meeting William today seems to bring some closure to my stay here in Liberia as I prepare myself to come home to my wife and family.
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