Two-thirds of the world’s population have no access to safe surgical care, accounting for one third of all preventable deaths. More than 17 million people die every year — more than from HIV, malaria and tuberculosis combined.
As one of only a few reconstructive surgeons serving the entire country, Dr. Faustin Ntirenganya has decided to train a new generation to follow in his path. The aim being to train surgeons from both the country and the whole of the Central African region.
My hope is that this film allows for Faustin’s voice to be heard far and wide.
But for the young surgeons coming through, the challenge is tough on a personal as well as a professional level.
Vicky must combat age-old sexism to forge a path for herself as a surgeon, while Yves struggles with the decision to leave his family behind to take up a fellowship at one of Canada’s leading university hospitals. We follow him as he realizes he cannot bear to live without them. When they finally join him in Canada, he begins to consider whether he might never return to Rwanda. While a surgeon in Rwanda earns around 350 dollars a month, salaries in Canada are more than a hundred times higher.
As the story unfolds, the pressure on Faustin grows. When a case goes tragically wrong, he withdraws from everything to rediscover the motivation behind his work. In the privacy of that moment, he shares his innermost thoughts.