McLEAN, Va. (AP): An African surgeon who is coming to the U.S. for treatment after contracting the Ebola virus received much of his surgical training through Christian missionary groups.



Martin Salia is a citizen of Sierra Leone, though his family lives in Maryland as permanent U.S. residents.



He received medical training through the United Brethren in Christ church – based in Huntington. The UB church  has numerous congregations in Sierra Leone. He later received surgical training through a nondenominational group that seeks to provide African doctors with high-quality training.



A colleague and fellow missionary, Richard Toupin of Auburn, Indiana said in a phone interview that Salia may be one of the best-trained surgeons in Sierra Leone.



Colleagues say Salia had been slated to work in Burkina Faso, unaffected by the Ebola outbreak, but those plans fell through.