For Tiu Sagaitu, the love for her village of Oinafa, Rotuma, led to nearly 30 years of service as the village nurse. It is a job that she does not plan to retire from any time soon, even when she is 60 years old.

“Every time I attend to a case, I get motivated because I know that I’m doing something to keep my fellow villagers well,” she said.

“Here in my village, I deal with a lot of hypertension cases and diabetes. I’m attached to this job now.”

Ms Sagaitu was handed adult diapers from Empower Pacific, in a bid to keep the health of their elderly villagers intact.

“We have a lot of elderly people in our village and they have difficulties getting access to diapers because of shipping irregularities. Getting it by plane is more expensive,” she said.

“Sometimes, I look for clean napkins and towels for them to use and it’s reusable as well. Some people don’t really like to see it but for me, it’s my due diligence of giving back to the community.”

Ms Sagaitu has attended many healthcare training sessions of her level over the years which she claims built the person that she is today.

“I get so overwhelmed with the massive work done by our health-care providers because doing this kind of work is not easy,” she said.

“We must respect the people who take good care of us because the learning process is not easy. We become better every time we deal with more patients.”

Feedback: josefa.babitu@fijisun.com.fj