Helping out Right Here
A medical-care milestone in Tarrafal was the visit paid by Dr Martin Peter. A general practitioner from Hannover, he held his first clinic in our health centre on 18 March and – for the very first time, and for four weeks – he ensured that the populace received continuous medical assistance. (The norm is that a doctor comes only once every two months…)
The first weekend of his visit saw Martin taking part in the inaugural feira de saúde, or ‘health fair’ in Tarrafal. This event involved some 50 physicians from various disciplines and other healthcare workers from Porto Novo and São Vicente who, among other things, carried out examinations, provided health information, compared notes with each other and talked with the public.
Dr. Peter then held a weekday morning clinic with either chief medic Ilídio or his assistant Jair at the health centre, ably assisted by Dona Rosa, their hardworking helper behind the scenes. The four of them made a great team!
Ilídio commented as follows:
“Working with Martin was fantastic – he is a superb doctor and has done great things for the village community. I value him and his contribution very highly. He is a very open-minded and kind person, and he has succeeded in building friendship with the people. I, like many others, have found a dear friend in Martin.”
Further information and Martin’s first impressions of his working holiday can be found under ‘Interview with Martin Peter’.