UCSF Doctor on personal mission to stop Ebola

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Ebola has now claimed more than a 1,000 lives and another doctor leading the fight against the disease has died in Sierra Leone.

Two Americans who are currently being treated for Ebola were given an experimental drug in the United States and are improving.

Dr. Dan Kelly of UCSF recently returned from Sierra Leone and is talking about the friends he's lost.

"I've had too many friends die and it's disheartening," said Kelly.

For Kelly, the fight to end the spread of the deadly virus is personal. He co-founded Well Body Alliance for the sole purpose of combating the disease.

"It inspires me to get on a plane and go to Sierra Leone, and it makes me want to call others to action. This is about the worst humanitarian crisis that we've seen connected to Ebola in history," said Kelly.

When Kelly isn't treating patients at UCSF he's doing research and working to stop the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. A fight he says is far from over.

"I think there are so many battles that we're facing in this war against Ebola that success for me is winning all of the small battles along the way," said Kelly.

Officials from the African union and the World Health Organization met in Ethiopia Wednesday to discuss the extent of the outbreak in West Africa.

"Ebola is also a disease for poor people and poor countries, so that's the main challenge," said Dr. Pierre Mpele-Kilebou.

The United Health Agency says of the more than 1,800 suspected or confirmed cases of Ebola recorded by authorities, at least 1,000 people with the symptoms have died.

A Tennessee doctor who came face-to-face with the outbreak is out of quarantine and talking about his ordeal.

"I lost contact with what time it was, the time of day or night and so it was somewhat difficult having people away from me," said Dr. Alan Jamison.

Kelly says healthcare workers and volunteers on the ground are putting themselves at risk to treat patients and fight the disease. Next week, he'll be among them. He's made almost a dozen trips to Sierra Leone since the outbreak.

"The impetus of my visit will be to conduct infectious control trainings. Ultimate success is when we see no more people die of Ebola," said Kelly.