Titus Yabua, a passionate health professional dedicated to changing local perceptions of illness and death, explains the challenges of running a remote health post and the importance of MAF’s support.
Story by Michelle Dauth
For the past two and a half years, Titus Yabua, a trained Community Health Worker in Dodomona, has been faithfully serving his people.
Growing up in Dodomona, nestled in the northeast corner of the Middle Fly District of Papua New Guinea’s Western Province, Titus witnessed many in his community losing their lives to treatable illnesses and injuries. This deeply fueled his passion to become a doctor. However, due to limited resources, he could only train as a community health worker.
We have educated our own people to understand that diseases are not caused by sorcery, sanguma, witchcraft or whatever.
Titus believes God has placed him in his community for a purpose.
“Sometimes I used to question why. Why were we placed in such a community where we don't have road access, and we are less privileged? But when I understand God, God doesn't make mistakes. He knows the reason why He placed us in such a remote area,” he said.
He explained how through his work the perception of sickness and death among his community has significantly changed. For Titus, simply treating patients or referring them to a hospital is not enough; he literally went the extra mile.
“We had to go village by village to give them a course or something like a workshop,” he said. “So, we have educated our own people, to understand that diseases are not caused by sorcery, sanguma, witchcraft or whatever.”
Sanguma is a term used in Papua New Guinea for sorcery or witchcraft. Unexplained illnesses, deaths, or disasters are often attributed to sanguma, leading to accusations against those believed to practice it. These accusations can result in violence, ostracism, or even death.
Titus went on to say that people now “know very well that when someone has a cough for like more than two months, they are already predicting that it is maybe tuberculosis because I have taught them.”
He also highlighted the difficulty of dealing with patients in critical condition as it takes several hours or days by foot to reach the nearest health station or hospital respectively.
“As a rural health worker, I would say MAF is our only ambulance...our only hope,” he said. “We work according to our limits, and when we see we couldn’t handle the cases, we look for help. And that’s when MAF steps in and they help us.”
Acknowledging the support MAF provides, he shared how significant the flights are to his work in Dodomona. Knowing the limitations of the Dodomona health facility and his own, he made the wise decision calling for a patient transfer flight for an expecting mother.
“We had a mother. She was pregnant, and she had some signs where I thought I would refer her here [from Dodomona to Mougulu]. From Mougulu the problem got worse. So, we arranged MAF [for a medical evacuation]. MAF helped us to refer her down to Tabubil. We really appreciate the service that is provided by MAF PNG.”
As the New Year started, Titus is looking forward to furthering his medical knowledge and career, having just been accepted into the Rumginae School of Nursing, so that when he returns to his community, he will be able to provide even better medical care for his people.