Damien Brown thinks he's ready when he arrives for his first African posting. But the town he's sent to is an isolated outpost of 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 seen; and the health workers walk out on him after his first shift. The medical calamities pile up but as Damien's friendships with the local people evolve, his passion for the work grows.