Dr. Kent Brantly certainly knows how it feels to stare at Ebola in the eyes. Not only did he deal with sick patients, he also contracted the infection himself. About a year later, he's sharing his story with the rest of the world.
Appearing on Fox News, Dr. Kent Brantly and his wife, Amber, shared they had co-written a book entitled Called for Life: How Loving Our Neighbor Led Us into the Heart of the Epidemic, along with David Thomas.
The title was certainly appropriate. Dr. Brantly and Amber uprooted their family from Texas and traveled to Liberia in late 2013. They wanted to contribute in a medical mission. Dr. Brantly, particularly, was with Samaritan's Purse at the time, working on his post residency. He was also a family care physician in Monrovia.
By the first quarter of 2014, the Ebola virus began to creep into Western Africa, beginning in Guinea. Emile Ouamouno, 2, is now believed to be patient zero of the recent outbreak. Living in a small Guinea village, he might have contracted the infection by playing in a tree with fruit bats, a known carrier of the virus. He, as well as some of his family members, later died. Overall, at least 8,000 people perished from the disease.
The virus then quickly spread in other neighboring countries such as Sierra Leone and Liberia. Dr. Brantly was in Monrovian hospital where they were comprehensively briefed to prepare for the outbreak.
Eventually, Ebola reached Liberia that Dr. Brantly found himself treating critically ill patients. One morning, he woke up with the same initial symptom. Later tests revealed he was positive of the virus. Fortunately, his family had long gone back to the States.
Dr. Brantly became the first Ebola patient to be brought to the United States, much to the criticism of many citizens. They were frightened and concerned the virus would spread.
However, as his wife put it, Dr. Brantly put a new face to Ebola-that is, it can be treated and that more attention had to be given to West Africa. With the new book too, they hoped that they could provide encouragement and inspiration to others who are facing difficult life challenges.
The book is currently available in Amazon and its official website.