Following the doctor's orders

Joe (left) and Tom recover in Yagaum's men's ward. Joe, in his 20s, dangles a cement-encased leg over the edge of his mattress. When asked to share his story, he gives a funny smile and looks away. "I was at another hospital in Lae, and they put cement on my leg," he says. "I couldn't wait, so I took the [cast] off myself."

To set it again, Yagaum staff had to re-break the leg. When the doctor sternly asks what he plans to do this time, Joe points to a pair of wooden crutches. "I will use my crutches," he says. "This time I will follow the instructions of my doctor."