OMAHA — There have been times when Dr. Philip Smith felt pressed to justify the existence of the biocontainment unit he opened almost a decade ago in an empty wing of Nebraska Medical Center. After all, the unit’s 10 beds sat empty for years, its team of specially trained doctors and nurses leaping into action only for periodic drills.

But with the arrival of two Ebola patients in the last six weeks, any doubts about the unit’s worth have vanished. Not only is it playing a central role in treating Americans returning from West Africa with the lethal disease, but Dr. Smith, the unit’s medical director, and his team members are fielding dozens of calls daily from anxious health care workers around the country who are suddenly eager to tap their knowledge about handling dangerously contagious patients.

“Everyone, everywhere, is thinking, ‘Are we really ready and what do we need to do?’ ” Dr. Angela Hewlett, the unit’s associate medical director, said. “We’ve been doing our best to respond to them as quickly as we can.”