A BRAVE Wirral doctor is one of three NHS volunteers from the north west departing for Sierra Leone today, Saturday, to join Britain’s fight against Ebola.

Dr Mark Willcox, 26, will join a group of more than 30 NHS volunteers to be deployed by the UK Government.

After arrival in the capital, Freetown, early tomorrow morning, he will complete a week of training before moving to British-built Ebola treatment centres across the country.

Following this training and acclimatisation, the group - which includes GPs, nurses, clinicians, psychiatrists and consultants in emergency medicine - will then begin work setting up procedures, diagnosing and treating people who have contracted the deadly virus.

They will work in treatment centres built by British Army Royal Engineers and funded by the Department for International Development.

Dr Willcox said: “I am in a position to go and help. I was greatly assisted by the Royal College of Surgeons, Dublin in getting a medical education so it’s a privilege to give something back.

“We have received superb training by the UK military who really should be recognised for their outstanding efforts in this crisis.

“My GP practice has been hugely supportive of me going which has been fantastic.”

Dr Hannah Ryan, 29, from the intensive care unit at Aintree University Hospital, Liverpool and health visitor Catherine Nixon, 30, for the Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust are also among the 30 volunteers.

International Development Secretary Justine Greening said:  “Our fight against Ebola in West Africa is one of Britain’s biggest responses to a disease outbreak. Almost a thousand military personnel, scientists, healthcare and aid workers are already on the ground in Sierra Leone working to contain, control and defeat this terrible disease.

“But to beat Ebola we desperately need the experience and dedication of skilled doctors and nurses to care for the thousands of sick and dying patients who are not receiving the treatment they need.

“Every one of these NHS heroes will play a vital role in the fight against Ebola. It is only because of their combined efforts that we stand a chance of defeating this disease.”

The NHS volunteers have been prepared for their deployment with nine days of intensive training at a specialist Ministry of Defence unit in York.

This included operating in a replica treatment centre, with members of the Armed Forces training them in the different stages of assessment and treatment of the disease.

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said:  “I want to thank the brave NHS volunteers who are heading to Sierra Leone today to help in the fight against Ebola. They embody the values at the heart of our health service, and their expertise and dedication is second to none.”

On arrival in Sierra Leone, the team will join other international healthcare workers to undergo another week of intensive training funded by the UK to ensure they are equipped with the skills to safely treat and contain Ebola.

After this training, they will be deployed across Sierra Leone according to the staffing needs of the treatment centres built by the UK.

The next teams of volunteers are due to go out in stages in the coming weeks.

Chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies said: "I have been really impressed with the numbers of NHS workers who have stepped forward to help the communities that have been devastated by Ebola.

 "The fact more than a 1,000 have come forward so far is a real testament to their commitment to public service. I want to offer my thanks to all those that are going, their efforts will make a real difference in West Africa.”

Once they reach full capacity, the Ebola treatment centres will triple Sierra Leone’s bed capacity, bringing the total number of DFID-supported beds to more than 700. The UK already has one centre open at Kerry Town, which is being run by Save the Children. The remaining five will open in the coming weeks, providing essential care to those in need.

The centres will be staffed by a mix of local, international and NHS volunteer health professionals and run by a variety of organisations including GOAL, International Medical Corps, Medicos del Mundo, Solidarités International and Emergency.

Cuba, Norway, Australia, New Zealand, and now Denmark have committed to providing significant numbers of health workers to staff UK treatment centres, alongside the NHS volunteers.

The deployment of NHS volunteers is part of wider UK efforts to control, contain and defeat Ebola. So far the UK has committed £230 million to the response in Sierra Leone.