The sad farewell to "Captain Optimist", the Spanish pediatrician who gave music and smiles to children with cancer

Antonio Javier Cepillo was a young pediatrician from the Spanish city of Albacete. He always cared for his little patients with high morale, prescribing a dose of optimism and always received them with a smile. In addition, he played the flute in a musical group, Los Guachis, specially trained to give music to hospitalized children in the oncology department of his hospital.

This doctor who, because of his deep humanity with which he carried out his task, had been distinguished by the prize "Captain Optimist" died a few days ago at the age of 36 years. The illness he fought against as a doctor, a cancer, ended his life. But his legacy was so important that the inhabitants of his city and all over Spain gather signatures to be called at the University Hospital of Albacete, where Dr. Cepillo worked.

In his 2016 farewell address to residents of the pediatric region, he confessed to his colleagues that in his third year of residency training, they had detected a mbad and that, overnight, a patient with cancer.

He also confessed that during his fight against the disease, trying to contain the sadness in waiting rooms in oncology, he had learned a lot about how a patient should not be treated, according to Spanish media.
ABC.

One year after giving this speech to the residents last June, the pediatrician and flutist from Los Guachis received the national recognition of "Captain Optimist", granted to doctors who humanize the profession with vocation, sensitivity and stimulate the smile and the good mood between his patients. The prize was a green clown nose.

The farewell of his friends and the request

Unfortunately, "Cepi", as called his innumerable friends and colleagues, could not defeat the disease and died earlier this month.

In addition to his role as pediatrician and musician, Cepillo was a friend of the former star of Barcelona currently in Japan, but also of Albacete Andrés Iniesta, who had sent him back with emotion through social networks:, altruism , dedication have been and will be an example for all, a very strong kiss for family and friends, rest in peace, Cepi ", wrote the footballer.

His Los Guachis group colleagues fired him with a sensitive letter posted on Facebook. Among the other lines of deep commotion, the text says: "Life has given us a captain, a charismatic leader, our best ambbadador, our Pied Piper, Wizard, Regidor, Chimney Sweep, Aviator, Triton, the living image of Little Prince."

The professional importance of Cepillo was so great that a petition was launched on the Change.org platform, requesting signatures, so that the University Hospital of Albacete, currently without a name, be named Antonio Javier Cepillo, in honor of the pediatrician.

"Humble doctor with the childish look, he gave a simple lesson of humanization to each of his steps, this pediatrician turned into actions the commitment of the humanization of health by leaving the l '. soul of a good man who preached with example, "concludes the petition, which has already collected nearly 33,000 signatures.