Two new physicians traveled halfway around the world to practice medicine in Weyburn.

Dr. Helen Mbata and Dr. Hamid Bimesl have joined the Sun Country Health Region, with Mbata being stationed in Radville and Bimesl in Weyburn.

Mbata is currently in Weyburn, filling in for a doctor on maternity leave, and will be transferring to Radville in August. Bimesl has a permanent position practicing in the Weyburn Primary Health Care Clinic.

Mbata, who is originally from Nigeria, moved to Belarus when she was around 19 years old, for medical school.

For Mbata, her interest in medicine came from her family history.

"I was just young when my dad became diabetic," she said. "And a couple of times I had seen him going to the hospital and I saw people taking care of him so, I was kind of curious."

Bimesl, who describes himself as an adventurous personality, is originally from Iran.

His interest for medicine came from his educational talents. Bimesl said when he applied for medical school in Tehran, he was competing against around 300,000 students for one of 200 seats.

"It was really common for us at school to choose between an engineer and a doctor," he said. "Because if you are doing well at a school, your family, your parents, they are expecting for you to go to those two branches."

Bimesl excelled at math but, "Because I wanted to have more communication with people, I chose to be a doctor."

Both doctors agree, it's about what they can do for other people, which makes the choice to be a physician satisfying.

"Getting them smiling," said Mbata. "The goal is get them back another time, that means they are satisfied with what you have done, both patient and their family. That is a big one for me, to make sure they are happy."

For Bimesl, it's also about reflecting on what you have done.

"When you get 80 years old and you're about to leave the world, then you ask the question, 'What have I done so far?' ... That really makes me happy," he said. "If I am a physician, I can help people."

Both Bimesl and Mbata are new to Saskatchewan. Mbata arrived in late May and Bimesl arrived in late June.

However, both have quite a history with medicine. Mbata has been practicing for over 20 years and Bimesl has more than a decade under his belt.

Both achieved positions in the province through the Saskatchewan International Physician Practice Assessment (SIPPA), which assess international medical graduates for family medicine.

Mbata said passing SIPPA is quite an accomplishment for any international doctor, and Bimesl agreed.

"It's really great, after one year and 11 months I could get into the medical practice in Canada, which was a new country for me," he said. "As opposed to other friends that have been seven, eight years in Canada, still struggling for getting into the medical practice here."

Before he came to Weyburn, Bimesl knew a little bit about the Canadian culture. He moved his family from Iran to Montreal in 2012, and has since worked in Esterhazy and Arcola.

"Of course, like when you look up the community (of Arcola) and see 800 people - seriously? No Tim Hortons even? It's just kind of scary for you to go there," Bismel laughed.

Mbata had a similar experience.

"Initially, when I got interviewed, I was asked about Radville and I said, 'Where is this Radville?'" she laughed. "I read a little bit about it, and then when I was supposed to be posted, they said, "You're going first to Weyburn.' And I said, 'Weyburn? Where is that?'"

Both doctors are happy with their decisions to come to our community.

Mbata said she enjoys the quiet life.

"It also has a certain resemblance, a little bit, of a (bigger) city. So, it's not way, way laid back, it's kind of in between and it's okay for me. I like it here," she said.

For Bimesl, he can be happy there is a Tim Hortons. As well, commuting to home is easy - two, maybe three, minutes.

"And so far so good, my wife is happy," he laughed. "She is going to Walmart everyday."

Bimesl also has high hopes for the community of Weyburn. He said there is potential for the city to expand, and he enjoys the friendly nature of its residents.

Mbata is excited to start her future in Radville - partially because of the scenery.

"There's just this whole lot of land in front of where I'm renting an apartment (in Radville). It's all yellow, as far as the eye can see," she said.