Wife Debbie Sacra 'Relieved to See His Face and Hear His Voice Again'

Contact: Palmer Holt, 704-662-2569, PHolt@InChristCommunications.com

OMAHA, Neb., Sept. 6, 2014 /Christian Newswire/ -- Debbie Sacra, wife of SIM missionary doctor Rick Sacra, who contracted Ebola Virus Disease in Liberia and was flown here for treatment Friday, said today her husband's condition has improved somewhat, but he is still very ill.

Sacra arrived at The Nebraska Medical Center with her oldest son Maxwell, 22, this afternoon.  She and her son visited with Rick, isolated in the hospital's biocontainment unit, for about 25 minutes over a video link.

"Rick is very sick and weak, but slightly improved from when he arrived yesterday," she said.  "He asked for something to eat and had a little chicken soup."

She said her husband did not remember much from yesterday, and that the priority for him is to rest.

She said she was "relieved to see his face and hear his voice again."

Sacra expressed her appreciation for the Med Center staff, and especially for the biocontainment unit and everything they were doing.

She said she and her husband were most interested in keeping the focus on the Ebola crisis in West Africa. 

"We don't want this story to be about Rick," she said.  "The story is the crisis in West Africa.  That is what is most important.  The world is coming to this fight late."

The latest updates on SIM’s role in the Ebola epidemic in Liberia are available at www.simusa.org/ebolacrisis.

SIM (www.simusa.org) is an international Christian mission organization with a staff of nearly 3,000 workers from over 50 countries serving in more than 65 nations. In addition to medicine, SIM serves on every continent in areas of education, community development, public health and Christian witness. While SIM stood for Sudan Interior Mission when it was founded 120 years ago, it is now a global mission known as SIM (pronounced S-I-M). 

To schedule an interview with SIM, contact Palmer Holt at 704-662-2569 or pholt@inchristcommunications.com.