A US survivor of the deadly Ebola virus has stated her belief in the power of prayer.
Nina Pham, a nurse from Texas, was the first person to contract the virus within the United States.
This is believed to have happened when she was nursing Thomas Duncan, who subsequently died.
Now declared free of Ebola after five negative test results, Ms Pham gave thanks to God and to all who prayed for her.
“I feel fortunate and blessed to be standing here today,” Ms Pham said in a press conference on October24.
“I would first and foremost like to thank God, my family and friends. Throughout this ordeal, I have put my trust in God and my medical team.”
Her friends have described Ms Pham as a devout Catholic.
She also thanked fellow survivor Dr Kent Brantly for donating his blood plasma for her treatment.
Ms Pham called his donation a “selfless act”.
“I believe in the power of prayer because I know so many people all over the world have been praying for me,” she continued.
“I join you in prayer now for the recovery of others.”
Ms Pham thanked everyone who had been involved in her care, both in Texas and in Maryland at the National Institutes of Health.
Dr Anthony Fauci, from the National Institutes of Health, said it wasn’t clear which treatment saved Ms Pham because they were all experimental.
Before returning to her “normal life” in Texas, Ms Pham received a bear hug from President Barack Obama in the Oval Office in Washington.
Ebola continues to devastate parts of west Africa.
The World Health Organisation said that nearly 5000 deaths had been reported as of October 19, but the true numbers could be as high as 15,000.
Sources
- Catholic News Agency
- ABC
- Image: ABC