A missionary doctor working in Africa who became the latest American to have been infected by the deadly Ebola virus is still sick but is in a stable condition.

Dr. Rick Sacra, 51, is confined and being treated at the special isolation unit at the Nebraska Medical Center and was reported to be making progress and even joking with the doctors and staff.

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Sacra arrived at the hospital last Friday from Liberia after he contracted the Ebola virus. He had been working as an obstetrician in Liberia for two decades when he got infected. Sacra was flown to the Offutt Air Force base and then transferred to an ambulance and finally wheeled on a gurney to the Nebraska Hospital.

The 10-bed special isolation unit where Sacra is currently confined was built to handle patients with highly infectious and deadly diseases, said Dr. Mark Rupp, chief of the infectious diseases at the center.

Dr. Phil Smith, the hospital's medical director, said he has pooled a team of 35 doctors, nurses, and health staff to treat and take care of Sacra, making sure he is always hydrated and has stable vital signs.

Smith said the team is discussing experimental treatment for Sacra including using blood serum from recovered patients. Smith added that there are no licensed drugs or vaccines yet to treat patients with Ebola and that around six drugs are still being developed.

The first two American missionaries infected by Ebola in Africa - Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebo - have fully recovered since being flown and treated at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta. Reports said Sacra was flown to the Nebraska Hospital as per federal officials' instructions in order to prepare other isolation wards to treat more Ebola patients if needed.

It is not clear how Sacra contracted the virus since he was not treating Ebola patients in Liberia but rather delivering babies and taking care of pregnant women.

According to reports, Sacra flew to Liberia in early August in order to help relieve two of his health workers who were ill with the deadly virus.

Reportedly, around 2,100 people have died from Ebola since the outbreak first began in February.

Doctors from the Omaha hospital said Sacra's confinement at the hospital does not pose a threat to the public since the Ebola virus is only transmitted through close contact with an infected person.

Sacra is said to have been helping with his own treatment by providing information to the doctors regarding what he witnessed during the Ebola outbreak in Africa.

TagsNebraska Hospital, Virus, outbreak, us doctor, doctor, missionary, Africa