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Helping heal friends beyond borders

By Xie Fang (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-02-13 07:41

Chinese physicians conduct a medical checkup for a pregnant woman suffering from cerebral malaria in a local hospital in Sikasso, Mali, in this file photo. [China Daily/Zhejiang public health bureau]

Chinese gynecologist Chen Yu has a recurring dream.

Every night for the past decade, the 50-year-old Chen finds herself back in hospital, where an assistant calls out in delight to the medical staff: "Look, Dr Chen is back!"

It is a fitting return for the veteran doctor to the hospital in the West African country of Mali, where she worked for two years from 1996.

"The work was tough. But as time passed, all the hardship I encountered became especially memorable. In some ways, it made my life there even richer than my time in China," said Chen, who is from the Zhejiang provincial people's hospital.

Chen is one of 674 Chinese medical workers sent by the government to the agriculture-based country of 13.52 million people in the past four decades. The Chinese doctors, selected from major municipal and provincial hospitals across Zhejiang province, have treated more than 2.7 million Mali patients and performed about 100,000 operations during that time.

The candidates, many of whom are male, must have university degrees or higher qualifications, as well as at least 10 years' working experience, said Zhu Yaochuan, director of the international cooperation department with Zheijiang's public health bureau.

Before departing for Mali, the healthcare professionals are also expected to attend language courses for six months, learning basic French and Bambala, Mali's indigenous language.

There are currently 31 Chinese medical professionals in Mali working at three different hospitals in two-year stints, with each team including a Chinese chef and a translator.

But nothing fully prepares the Chinese healthcare staff for their time in Mali once they actually start working in their designated hospitals, Chen said.

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