When the YWAM Medical Ships team first arrived in a Motuan village just outside of Port Moresby, a group of curious children gathered around them.
The team began to get to know the children by greeting them with smiles, asking their names, and shaking their hands.
YWAM Medical Ships’ team member, Dr Tarek Grez, asked the children if any of them wanted to be a doctor. The children said in unison, “Sebo*! Sebo!”
Sebo was a young boy well known in the village for his dream – he longed to be a doctor when he grew up. The children ran to go and find Sebo with excitement, they were eager to introduce him to the visiting doctor that traveled all the way from his home country, Chile, to see them.
In a country where there is less than 1 doctor for every 10,000 people**, the YWAM Medical Ships team were compelled to encourage and cheer on Sebo in the pursuit of his goal.
Each day, Dr Tarek and Sebo would have “clinical meetings” where Dr Tarek would explain interesting cases he had come across on his trip, and teach him skills like listening to a heartbeat, and taking a pulse.
Sebo listened intently, soaking in all the information he could from his Chilean mentor. Sebo’s friends circled around them – eager to be the patients Sebo practiced on.
At a young age, the seeds of hope in Sebo’s heart have been watered with encouragement and a vision of what could be.
Indeed, what Dr Tarek has imparted is more than just how to use a stethoscope, but a belief that dreams can come true.
*Name changed
**2012 Health Service Delivery Report compiled by the Department of Health and the World Health Organisation
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