Overview

Damien Brown is a twenty-nine-year-old Australian doctor, inexperienced but motivated by a strong desire to help, when he arrives in Angola - an impoverished, war-torn country in south west Africa - for a six-month posting with Medecins Sans Frontieres. It's his first stint with the organisation, and he thinks he's ready. But the town he's sent to is an isolated outpost of mud huts, surrounded by landmines; the hospital, for which he's to be the only doctor, is filled with malnourished children and conditions he's never encountered; and the health workers, a group of fifty-something-year-old African war veterans who speak only Portuguese - a language Damien doesn't understand - walk off following an altercation on his first shift. During the months that follow, Damien confronts the personal and professional challenges of life in such an alien context, all the while dealing with the social absurdities of living with only three other volunteers for company. Medical calamities account for the highs and lows of day-to-day life - a leopard attack, a landmine explosion, and having to perform surgery using tools cleaned on the fire being among the many examples - but it's through Damien's evolving friendships with the health workers, formerly his biggest challengers, that his empathy and understanding grows. Band-aid for a Broken Leg is vivid, honest, funny and full of humanity.

Full Product Details

Author:   Damien Brown
Publisher:   Allen & Unwin
Imprint:   Allen & Unwin
Dimensions:   Width: 15.50cm , Height: 2.70cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.484kg
ISBN:  

9781743310212

ISBN 10:   1743310218
Pages:   352
Publication Date:   01 July 2012
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Table of Contents

Reviews

Author Information

Damien Brown is an Australian doctor who began writing seriously after his last humanitarian posting, encouraged by readers of a blog he kept while working in Africa.

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions