Welcome, dear Andrin and dear Simeon

Andrin and Simeon will be joining our team in Cambodia from May 2025. The two medical students will be working for two months in our children's hospital and maternity ward in Siem Reap. Here they introduce themselves.

Andrin Baer, 25, Zurich

It wasn't easy for me to choose my degree course, as I have a wide range of interests and am enthusiastic. I have always been particularly fascinated by scientific subjects. At the same time, I realized early on how fulfilling contact with people and compassion in interpersonal relationships are for me. Medicine offers me the unique opportunity to combine these two aspects. I see it as a great privilege to be able to accompany and support people in matters of health.

I am very much looking forward to broadening my horizons at the Kantha Bopha Children's Hospital in Siem Reap. I believe that this assignment offers a valuable opportunity to gain a deep insight into a different culture and a healthcare system that was previously unfamiliar to me. I am particularly interested in how people in Cambodia perceive health - and I hope to question and further develop my own understanding of health as a result.

The biggest challenge I see is the language barrier. It will be exciting to work in an environment where I don't speak the language. At the same time, I am curious to see how communication - especially with children - can still succeed, even beyond words. I hope to gain many impressions that will help me in my future career, not only professionally, but above all as a person. I am very grateful to have been given this opportunity. And I look forward to fulfilling the tasks assigned to me with empathy, the best possible knowledge and conscience as well as a good dose of humility. I hope to learn successfully, make a contribution and take home a wealth of experience - both professionally and personally.

Simeon Fässler, 24, Appenzell AI

I was already interested in science subjects at elementary school. First it was biology, then chemistry at grammar school, and finally I stood there with my school-leaving certificate and had to make a decision. In the end, it was the contact with people that appealed to me and persuaded me to apply for human medicine instead of a purely scientific course.

Ever since I started studying, and even before that, I wanted to find out what everyday life is like in the healthcare systems of other countries, far away from Switzerland. Given the cultural differences, the health problems in tropical and poorer areas that I was unfamiliar with and the fact that medical resources do not seem to be practically unlimited as they are in Switzerland, this experience appeals to me greatly.

My number one goal is to take away as much knowledge as possible: New theoretical knowledge, but also as many practical skills as possible. I hope to have an instructive and varied time. I'm most looking forward to what awaits me culturally and in terms of people. I've actually never been to Asia before and I'm already in a great mood for departure. On the other hand, I've never been away from home for so long at a time, and not seeing my family, friends and girlfriend for so long makes me a little nervous.