 Statement from Bishop Scott JonesThe people of the Great Plains Conference are mourning the death of Dr. Martin Salia, along with the rest of the global community. We are grateful to God for his sacrificial service in caring for the people of Sierra Leone. The United Methodist Church continues its commitment to helping to eradicate the global Ebola epidemic and we pray for all of the victims and those fighting this disease. We know the University of Nebraska Medical Center is still a place of hope and healing and hold their staff in our prayers.Dr. Martin Salia contracted the Ebola virus while treating patients in Sierra Leone, and was transported to the Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) in Omaha on Saturday, Nov. 15, in “extremely critical condition, including kidney and respiratory failure. Dr. Salia had initially tested negative for the virus; but a subsequent test came back positive on Nov. 10. Monday morning Dr. Salia went into cardiac arrest, from which he was not able to recover. While the staff at UNMC is deeply saddened and grieving, they do not feel defeated. This case solidified their determination to care for Ebola patients. "Our staff is taking this extremely hard. We did everything we could," said Dr. Jeffrey Gold, chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, in a press conference on Nov. 17. While at the UNMC Salia received two forms of interventions, ZMapp (provided by pharmaceutical company) and convalescent plasma (donated by an anonymous Ebola survivor). The Nebraska Medical Center staff worked around the clock in their efforts to save Dr. Salia who "arrived [in Nebraska] on day 13 of his illness with Ebola. The earlier you start supportive care, the better," said Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the Biocontainment Unit at the hospital, answering questions during the press conference.   Mike DuBose, United Methodist News ServiceDr. Martin Salia is shown at United Methodist Kissy Hospital outside Freetown, Sierra Leone, in April, 2014. PreviousNext Church mourns Ebola death of Sierra Leone surgeon by Kathy L. Gilbert The Sierra Leone United Methodist Conference is in shock over the death of Dr. Martin Salia from Ebola. Salia, who was the chief medical officer and only surgeon at United Methodist Kissy Hospital, died after he was airlifted to the United States for treatment. “We are trying to come to terms with the reality of his death,” said Bishop John K. Yambasu. “We never thought we would be losing one of our head doctors to Ebola.” “He was everything to us,” Yambasu said, adding Salia was one of only a very few surgeons in the country. The bishop reported that everyone in the United Methodist office in Sierra Leone was crying and reeling from the sad news. The conference office closed on Nov. 17 as soon as they got word that Salia had died around 4 a.m. CT at Nebraska Medical Center, where he had been taken on Saturday, Nov. 14. The office will remain closed Nov. 18, for a day of mourning, with a memorial service planned for Salia the following day. “Scripture abounds in calling us to give thanksgiving in all situations, but sometimes it is hard,” Yamabu said. “We are all in prayer for his wife and children.” Kissy was shut down Nov. 11 as soon as staff received word Salia had tested positive for Ebola. The doctor quarantined himself as soon as he started feeling ill, which was around Nov. 4. Kissy is not an Ebola center and Salia was not treating anyone with Ebola at Kissy, Yambasu said. However, Salia did work at other hospitals because he was in such demand as a surgeon. “He did not knowingly treat any Ebola patients,” Yambasu said, however he added, many people who come into the hospitals think they have malaria or other common diseases and are not aware they are Ebola positive. Kissy Hospital’s staff of approximately 91 people are home under quarantine for the next 21 days. Three people who did have contact with Salia after he got sick but before he tested positive for Ebola are under quarantine at Kissy. None of the three are sick. The Ministry of Health has started the first of five rounds of decontamination at the hospital. Doctor never recovered Nebraska Medical Center is one of four centers in the United States designated to treat Ebola patients. Two Americans, Dr. Rick Sacra and Ashoka Mukpo, a freelance cameraman who worked for NBC, were treated there and released last month. The private plane carrying Salia arrived at Omaha’s Eppley Airfield at 2:44 p.m. local time (3:44 p.m. ET) Saturday. As snow fell, people dressed in bright yellow protective clothing loaded Salia onto an isolation pad and then into the back of an ambulance. The medical crew transporting Salia, 44, had determined that his condition was stable enough for him to make the lengthy flight to Omaha, but he was very ill. In announcing Salia’s death, Dr. Phil Smith, medical director of the biocontainment unit at Nebraska Medical Center said, “It is with extremely heavy heart that we share this news. Dr. Salia was extremely critical when he arrived here, and unfortunately, despite our best efforts, we weren’t able to save him.” Doctors said Salia was suffering from kidney and respiratory failure when he arrived and was placed on dialysis, a ventilator and multiple medications including a dose of ZMapp. He also received a plasma transfusion from a patient who had recovered from Ebola. During a Nov. 17 press conference, Dr. Daniel Johnson, division chief for critical care anesthesiology, said he was proud of the team’s work. “We really, really gave it everything we could,” he said. Doctors in Nebraska could not say how Salia contracted the disease, but Smith noted the first Ebola test, performed Nov.7, was negative, which is not uncommon. A Nov. 10 test confirmed Salia had Ebola and he arrived in the U.S. on Day 13 of his illness. Because an Ebola patient’s body remains contagious, public health mandates cremation. As a precaution, hospital staff who treated Salia will follow self-monitoring protocols for possible symptoms of infection. Rosanna Morris, chief nursing officer, called it “an absolute honor to care for Dr. Salia” and praised his wife, who was at the medical center when he died. “She is an incredibly strong, stoic, brave individual who really taught us a lot about someone going through these circumstances,” she said. Morris also praised the medical center staff. “I want to thank our local heroes who took care of a global hero these past few days,” she said. ‘Grateful for efforts’ In a statement released by the medical center, Isatu Salia expressed thanks for her husband’s care. “We’re very grateful for the efforts of the team led by Dr. Smith,” she said. “In the short time we spent here, it was apparent how caring and compassionate everyone was. We are so appreciative of the opportunity for my husband to be treated here and believe he was in the best place possible.” United Methodist Bishop Scott Jones, episcopal leader for the Great Plains Conference, which includes Kansas East, Kansas West and Nebraska, invited Mrs. Salia to attend a special prayer service Sunday, Nov. 16, at Hanscom Park United Methodist Church in Omaha, Nebraska. "I prayed with her and assured her that the United Methodist people of Nebraska and Kansas will be keeping her and her husband in our prayers," he said. After getting word of Salia’s death, Jones said everyone in the Great Plains Conference was mourning the news. “We are grateful to God for his sacrificial service in caring for the people of Sierra Leone,” Jones said. “The United Methodist Church continues its commitment to helping to eradicate the global Ebola epidemic and we pray for all of the victims and those fighting this disease.” Jones said the conference would continue to seek funds to help Salia’s family pay medical and transportation expenses. The State Department reported Mrs. Salia, who is a U.S. citizen and a resident of Maryland, requested the evacuation. Her husband was a lawful permanent resident of the U.S. Bishop Marcus Matthews, Baltimore-Washington Conference,said his conference is joining the Great Plains Conference in supporting the Salia family with donations. Prayer service More than 50 people prayed, lit candles and wrote notes of encouragement to Salia during the prayer vigil at Hanscom Park Church, located just blocks from the medical center. Missouri River District Superintendent Dan Flanagan urged United Methodists to help the Salia family by donating to fund set up to help them deal with the $200,000 cost of transport to the United States. He also hoped efforts to support Salia and his family would encourage United Methodists to “be health advocates for all and respond more quickly to global health issues.” Bishop Warner H. Brown Jr., president of the United Methodist Council of Bishops, said the church is deeply saddened by the news of Salia’s passing, calling him “a dedicated Christian physician who was living out a calling to serve others.” “We are inspired by his faith and by other health care workers like him around the world who provide medical care to those who might not otherwise have care, even at risk to themselves," Brown said. ‘Trained as a Christian surgeon’ In an interview with United Methodist Communications earlier this year, Salia talked about how important it was for him to work at a Christian hospital. “I knew it wasn’t going to be rosy, but why did I decide to choose this job? I firmly believe God wanted me to do it. And I knew deep within myself. There was just something inside of me that the people of this part of Freetown needed help,” Salia said. "I see it as God’s own desired framework for me. I took this job not because I want to, but I firmly believe that it was a calling and that God wanted me to. ... And I’m pretty sure, I’m confident that I just need to lean on him, trust him, for whatever comes in, because he sent me here. And that’s my passion,” Salia said. Kissy serves one of the poorest neighborhoods in Freetown. The 60-bed United Methodist hospital is part of a larger community outreach that includes a school, an eye clinic, and a newly updated maternal and child health facility. Salia said his philosophy was simple: “God will heal them. And money comes. “I firmly believe God wanted me to do this job. It was a calling.” Gilbert is a multimedia reporter for United Methodist News Service. Phileas Jusu, director of communications for The United Methodist Church in Sierra Leone, contributed to this story. News media contact: Diane Degnan at (615) 483-1765 or DDegnan@umcom.org. _____________________ Dr. Salia's family made the decision to have him transported to Omaha, Nebraska, at their own cost of about $200,000. The Great Plains conference established a fund to benefit the Salia family by helping cover the cost of transportation and related medical costs. Prayer vigil held in Omaha Sunday night Hanscom Park UMC hosted a vigil to lift up Dr. Salia and his family, and to pray for families across the globe suffering due to the Ebola virus. Download the liturgy. The Rev. Dan Flanagan and the Rev. Zach Anderson led the special service as more than 40 people braved the cold and gathered in the church to offer prayers, sing hymns of worship and write notes of thanks to be delivered to the Salia family. A Prayer Service in Support of Those Affected by Ebola Welcome Gathering: We gather this evening because we care about our brothers and sisters worldwide whose lives are threatened by disease. We gather because we know that many others are caring for the sick and dying at risk to their own health. We gather because families have experienced the loss that comes with death. We gather because we care. Hymn: Just As I Am verses 1, 4‐6 UMH #357 Let us pray: (this prayer is not on screen, leader only; could alternate voices) A Prayer for Those Affected by Ebola If we had a thousand tongues, O God, we would not be able to praise you enough for the gift of your handiwork. When nothing existed but chaos and a formless void, your breath brought forth light and life. Then you breathed your spirit into us, and you fashioned humankind to reflect your very image. Your hands made and continue to make beautiful things from dust. Gracious God, we also recognize that because of our carelessness, your world now groans with labor pains; creation bears the scars of destruction, and many suffer. Therefore, you have called us to uncover our eyes in order to see the world’s needs, to include our ears to hear the world’s cries, and to open our mouths to speak life where there is death. Today, O God, we especially lift up to you our brothers and sisters in Nigeria, Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone—for all those who live with the threat of the Ebola virus. We call you the Great Physician. We pray your healing power to touch those bodies that now shake with fever, ache with pain, and are too weak to sustain the demands of life. Gracious God, we know you are a Mighty God. Grant access to medical care for the most vulnerable in West Africa. Protect doctors and nurses who kneel at the bedsides of the sick and the dying. Provide resources in places of lack. Guide churches and church leaders. Empower all who work tirelessly to be Christ’s hands and feet. Hold parents who’ve lost children. Gently father and mother children who’ve lost their parents. Make your presence known to those who are dying alone, in the streets, in wastelands, without friends or family. Give strength to our friends in West Africa who feel that “life more abundantly” is an unfulfilled promise. Holy God, we know you are the Light overcoming darkness. Why should we be afraid? Help us, O God, to trust in your unchanging nature in times of uncertainty. Hear our prayer. Amen. Adapted from a Prayer written by The Rev. Frederick Yebuah for the General Board of Discipleship. Rev. Yebuah is a native of Ghana in West Africa, is a clergy member of the South Carolina Annual Conference, currently serving as the Orangeburg District Superintendent. Scripture Reading Mark 2:1‐12 Mark 2: A Paraplegic 1-5 After a few days, Jesus returned to Capernaum, and word got around that he was back home. A crowd gathered, jamming the entrance so no one could get in or out. He was teaching the Word. They brought a paraplegic to him, carried by four men. When they weren’t able to get in because of the crowd, they removed part of the roof and lowered the paraplegic on his stretcher. Impressed by their bold belief, Jesus said to the paraplegic, “Son, I forgive your sins.” 6-7 Some religion scholars sitting there started whispering among themselves, “He can’t talk that way! That’s blasphemy! God and only God can forgive sins.” 8-12 Jesus knew right away what they were thinking, and said, “Why are you so skeptical? Which is simpler: to say to the paraplegic, ‘I forgive your sins,’ or say, ‘Get up, take your stretcher, and start walking’? Well, just so it’s clear that I’m the Son of Man and authorized to do either, or both . . .” (he looked now at the paraplegic), “Get up. Pick up your stretcher and go home.” And the man did it—got up, grabbed his stretcher, and walked out, with everyone there watching him. They rubbed their eyes, incredulous—and then praised God, saying, “We’ve never seen anything like this!” Response: Psalm 30 Leader: Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God. People: Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid. Leader: I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. People: The Lord is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. Leader: I will praise you, Lord, for you have rescued me. You refused to let my enemies triumph over me. People: O Lord my God, I cried out to you for help, and you restored my health. You brought me up from the grave, O Lord. Leader: When I was prosperous I said, “Nothing can stop me now!” Your favor, O Lord, made me as secure as a mountain. Then you turned away from me, and I was shattered. I cried out to you, O Lord. I begged the Lord for mercy saying, “what will you gain if I die, if I sink down into the grave? Can my dust praise you from the grave? Can it tell the world of your faithfulness? People: Hear me, Lord, and have mercy on me. Help me, O Lord.” Leader: You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing. People: you have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. Leader: Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God. People: Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid. Leader: I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. People: The Lord is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. Hymn: Healer of Our Every Ill Faith We Sing #2213 Responsive Prayer for Healing and Wholeness Leader: We come today knowing others who need prayer. We come knowing other places in need of God’s healing presence. Let us name before God those for whom we offer our prayers. (include Candle lighting here. Candles put into sand, if that is available. Otherwise, pass the lighting of candles in the pew, like Christmas Eve? OR Invite spontaneous naming of those who need prayer. Encourage offering the name only, not a narrative of the problem. Maybe “plant” some people to model this. [brief Time of silence.] Leader: God the Father, your will for all people is health and salvation. We praise you and thank you, O Lord. People: Son of God, you came that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. We praise you and thank you, O Lord. (brief silence after every petition) Leader: Holy Spirit, you make our bodies the temple of your presence. We praise you and thank you, O Lord. People: Lord, grant your healing grace to all who are sick, injured or disabled, that they may be made whole. Hear us, O Lord of life. Leader: Grant to all who seek your guidance, and to all who are lonely, anxious or despondent, a knowledge of your will and an awareness of your presence. Hear us, O Lord of life. People: Mend broken relationships, and restore those in emotional distress to soundness of mind and serenity of spirit. Hear us, O Lord of life. Leader: Bless physicians, nurses, and all others who minister to the suffering, granting them wisdom and skill, sympathy and patience. Hear us, O Lord of life. People: Give to the dying peace and a holy death, and uphold by the grace and consolation of your Holy Spirit those who are bereaved. Hear us, O Lord of life. Leader: Restore to wholeness whatever is broken by human sin: in our lives, in our nation, and in the world. Hear us, O Lord of life. People: You are the Lord who does wonders. You have declared your power among the peoples. Leader: With you, O Lord, is the well of life, and in your light we see light. All: Hear us, O Lord of life. Heal us, and make us whole. Leader: Gracious and Merciful Lord, our desire is to learn what and who you are calling us to be in your world. We call out to you that we might have the courage to give to you whatever burdens we entered with today so that our hearts and minds can be open to you, to your Word, and to your Spirit — the same life‐giving breath from the irst of creation. So it is together that we use our breath to pray the words Christ taught us: "Our Father in heaven, Reveal who you are. Set the world right; Do what’s best— as above, so below. Keep us alive with three square meals. Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others. Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil. You’re in charge! You can do anything you want! You’re ablaze in beauty! Yes. Yes. Yes." Hymn: Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah #127 Offer the opportunity for people to write notes to the Salia family. Would need to have half sheets of paper available. These could be collected and someone deliver to the hospital. People could remain in the church in silence following the benediction. Possibly hand out the paper when they come in. Benediction Almighty God, so draw our hearts to you, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly yours. And then use us we pray, as you will, and always to your glory and the welfare of your people. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen _____________________ Lighting candles to symbolize the light of Christ and the worldwide community of Christians coming together, vigil attendees prayed for healing and wisdom for a global family fighting against Ebola. Following the service, offerings were collected to support the Salia family's expenses and many stayed to create hand-written messages of thanks to Dr. Salia and his family. Dr. Salia's family made the decision to have him evacuated to Omaha at their own cost of about $200,000. The Great Plains conference established a fund to benefit the Salia family by helping cover the cost of transportation and related medical costs. Consider having your own vigil in support of ending the battle with Ebola and please give to help the Salia family. Contributions for the Salia family can be made online or sent to: Great Plains Conference, P.O. Box 4187, Topeka, KS 66604.   United Methodist response to Ebola continuesUnited Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is working with partner organizations to respond to the ongoing Ebola crisis in West Africa and already has issued more than $400,000 in grants. Our primary partners have been the United Methodist Church (UMC) Health Boards in Sierra Leone and Liberia. The International Disaster Response unit at UMCOR is collaborating with Global Health to provide weekly support to these health boards, as they fine-tune their strategy for combating the disease. Your gifts to International Disaster Response, Advance #982450enable this response and are the best way to make a difference in the struggle against the spread of ebola.
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Monday, November 17, 2014
The Great Plains Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church "Donations being accepted to support Salia family" for Monday, 17 November 2014
The Great Plains Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church "Donations being accepted to support Salia family" for Monday, 17 November 2014
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