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Dallas Hospital Where U.S. Ebola Patient Died Setting Up Fund For Victims In West Africa

Dallas Hospital Where U.S. Ebola Patient Died Setting Up Fund For Victims In West Africa
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Associate Editor of Impact, The Huffington Post

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FILE - This 2011 photo provided by Wilmot Chayee shows Thomas Eric Duncan at a wedding in Ghana. It may not matter much that Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas apologized for initially misdiagnosing Duncan, who was sent home from the emergency room but later returned sicker and farther along on a painful decline to death from Ebola. Insulated by Texas tort reform that gives an extra layer of protection to emergency room doctors and nurses, not only is the very feasibility of winning a lawsuit complicated, but the potential payout is severely capped. (AP Photo/Wilmot Chayee)

The family of Thomas Eric Duncan, who died of Ebola at a Dallas hospital on Oct. 8, is hoping to use the Liberian national's tragic death to benefit thousands in West Africa.

In a statement released Wednesday, Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas said it would be honoring Duncan by establishing a memorial fund in his name, with donations benefiting Ebola victims in West Africa. According to CNN, the fund will be run by a Duncan family member and Texas Health Resources.

"We know that this has been a terribly sad, difficult and trying time for Mr. Duncan’s family and friends," the hospital stated on its website. "And they will continue to be in the hearts and prayers of the entire Texas Health Presbyterian family."

The hospital also confirmed it has amicably resolved all legal matters with Duncan's family, and apologized that Duncan had not been diagnosed with Ebola upon his initial visit to the hospital's emergency department.

Of the nine Ebola cases treated in the U.S., Duncan has been the only patient to die, according to The New York Times. The most recent patient treated in the U.S., Dr. Craig Spencer, was declared Ebola-free and released from a New York City hospital on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that 5,147 people have died due to Ebola in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone as of the end of Nov. 9, according to Reuters. There have been 14,068 cases recorded in the three hardest-hit West African countries.

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Before You Go

U.S. Opens Ebola Units In Liberia
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU)(01 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. military and the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) staff unload cargo at the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The MMU will be staffed by U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS); it has a capacity of 25 beds and is expected to open this week to treat any medical workers in Liberia that become Ebola patients themselves while assisting in the response to the virus. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
U.S. Marines Arrive In Liberia(02 of14)
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U.S marines arrival at the Roberts International airport in Monrovia, Liberia, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2014. Six U.S. military planes arrived Thursday at the epicenter of the Ebola crisis, carrying more aid and American Marines into Liberia, the country hardest hit by the deadly disease that has devastated West Africa and stirred anxiety across a fearful world. At a World Bank meeting in Washington, the presidents of several West African countries struggling with Ebola pleaded for help, with one calling the epidemic "a tragedy unforeseen in modern times." (AP Photo/Abbas Dulleh) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
U.S. Soldiers Train Medical Workers(03 of14)
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US soldiers teach medical workers how to effectively wear protective gear during a training session on fighting Ebola on November 7, 2014 at the police academy in Monrovia, where a US military base is located. West Africa's regional bloc on November 7 called for international help to go beyond immediate medical care for Ebola-hit nations, warning that lives had been blighted by the epidemic. The raging Ebola outbreak has likely killed far more people than the 4,818 deaths reported by the World Health Organization, an expert at the UN health agency said on November 6, warning that thousands of fatalities were likely not accounted for. (credit:ZOOM DOSSO/AFP/Getty Images)
U.S. Soldiers Train Medical Workers(04 of14)
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(credit: ZOOM DOSSO/AFP/Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (05 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. military and the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) members unload cargo at the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (Photo by Michel du Cille/The Washington Post via Getty Images) (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (06 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA - NOVEMBER 4: Medical staff prepare to simulate treating Ebola patients as Commander Calvin Edwards talks with LT. Junior Grade Lauren Ryszka, a nurse acting as a patient in the bed, while Captain Russ Bowman, a doctor, arranges items at right, Inside the new Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The MMU will be staffed by U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS); it has a capacity of 25 beds and is expected to open this week to treat any medical workers in Liberia that become Ebola patients themselves while assisting in the response to the virus . The unit was constructed by the U.S. military and the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS). (Photo by Michel du Cille/The Washington Post via Getty Images) (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (07 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) medical staff, (left to right) Commander Paul Garney, LT. Junior Grade Victoria D'Addeo, and Lt. Junior Grade Jennifer Danieley, dressed in protective suits, prepare to simulate treating an Ebola patient inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU)(08 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: Medical staff simulate treating an Ebola patient inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU)(09 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) medical staff, (left to right) LT. Junior Grade Victoria D'Addeo, Lt. Junior Grade Jennifer Danieley, and Commander Paul Garney dressed in protective suits, prepare to simulate treating an Ebola patient inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (10 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: Staff members with the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) meet inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. The MMU will be staffed by U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS); it has a capacity of 25 beds and is expected to open this week to treat any medical workers in Liberia that become Ebola patients themselves while assisting in the response to the virus . (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (11 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) medical staff (left to right) Lt. Junior Grade Jennifer Danieley with Commander Alexis Mosquera (no suit) helping her to get dressed up in a protective suit as LT. Junior Grade Victoria D'Addeo, and Commander Paul Garney, prepare in the background to simulate treating an Ebola patient inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU)(12 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS) Commander Thomas Janisko simulates straying solution on Lt. Commander Jennifer Danieley (cq), with LT. Victoria D'Addeo and Commander Paul Garney (at right) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU)(13 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: Medical staff members LT. Junior Grade Lauren Ryszka acts as a patient in bed while LT. Junior Grade Victoria D'Addeo simulate treating her as an Ebola patient inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
The American built Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) (14 of14)
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MONROVIA, LIBERIA-NOVEMBER 4: A view of the ward for suspected ebola cases inside the Monrovia Medical Unit (MMU) on Tuesday November 4, 2014 in Monrovia, Liberia. (credit:The Washington Post via Getty Images)
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