Sierra Leonean Doctor Volunteers to Help in the Fight against Ebola

By M.B. Jalloh, Press Attaché, Saudi Arabia

Volunteering is an altruistic activity in which a person serves the community and helps others without pay. This selfless service can be either in a physical, material or intellectual form.

Volunteerism is seen only in societies that are cultured and matured.

Volunteering is one of the finest acts a person can perform and there is no room for discrimination among volunteers, all of whom are equal while doing voluntary work for the benefit of the community free of charge. There are different motivations for voluntary work. Some volunteers are motivated by religion while others are driven by social, moral or humanitarian factors.

The importance of volunteering does not vary with the types of services with which volunteers are involved. Some doctors, for example, spend a part of their time treating the poor and needy free of charge, and this is voluntary work.

Dr. Ishmael Foday Bangura is General Practitioner at the Bahrain Specialist Hospital (BSH) – a medical hospital that stands as a center of excellence in the Arabian Gulf.  It is a highly specialized Medical Center that provides up to date medical services by experienced Consultants and Specialists, using the latest technologies with the-state-of-the-art medical equipment and systems.

 In a telephone interview with him last night, he called on all Sierra Leonean medical practitioners particularly those specialized in the treatment of viral hemorrhagic fevers, to join the Sierra Leone Government and its International partners in the fight against the spread of Ebola. Dr. Conteh says: “It’s high time we go to our country to save lives at this crucial time. This is the time we should sacrifice for our country and this is the time our country needs us most.”

Like the late Dr. Umar Khan, he said on the phone, we should go home now and let the world know that Sierra Leoneans are true patriots. I will take my leave at any time from now to go to my one and only country and help in the fight against the deadly disease. “I am therefore appealing to my colleagues around the world to follow-suit,” the Sierra Leonean Doctor concluded.