GIFT Bursary Report by Jonathan Messing         

Introduction

On Monday 8^th April 2013 I was on the plane. I had spent the last Friday in an exam hall sitting my medical school finals, the Saturday moving out of my rental home in Hammersmith with a pounding headache, and the Sunday saying goodbye to my family, friends and girlfriend for three months. I no longer had any ties to the Western world and was on my way to Papua New Guinea.

As part of the medical school course, I was required to work in a hospital outside of my normal catchment area, and many of my colleagues chose to stay in London or travel to New York to build contacts, or chose to