People walk into Boao Super Hospital, Boao, Hainan Province on Friday. Photo: Xie Jun/GT

A total of 11 surgeries have been successfully broadcast in real time using 5G at the Hainan-based Boao Super Hospital, an anonymous employee at the hospital told the Global Times.

The hospital, located in Boao, South China's Hainan Province, already has complete 5G coverage. The main hall looks neat and elegant. On the marble backdrop, there is a board introducing professionals at the top of their fields, but who work in other top-ranked hospitals, who can carry out diagnostic treatment at Boao Super hospital.

At the hospital's remote medical consultation center, there is a large screen. According to the member of staff, in certain cases, surgeries done by experienced doctors would be broadcast in real-time for other doctors to watch and learn.

One example of a surgery shown in real-time was a cornea operation, which 200 doctors watched in the hospital's screening room, as well as doctors in other hospitals, chinanews.com reported.

The member of staff did not reveal any details about the other 10 surgeries.

5G technology will exert a huge influence on the medical industry in the future, particularly with applications such as remote surgery and distance teaching, experts said.

"5G, which makes high-resolution videos with no time-lag possible, is especially suitable for application in remote surgeries which require clear display of details and time control," domestic tech expert Liu Dingding told the Global Times on Friday.

Recently, a patient suffering from Parkinson's disease underwent China's first 5G-based remote surgery conducted by a doctor in Sanya, also in Hainan. But the patient was actually in an operating theater in a Beijing hospital.

Telecom expert Fu Liang told the Global Times on Friday that in future, 5G can be connected with artificial intelligence technologies, which will make it possible for operations to be carried out by robots and guided by doctors in other locations.

5G will also facilitate online consultation of doctors from different cities, he said.

Liu Dingding said that it is possible the government will try out medical 5G trials first in Hainan, and then gradually expand it to other regions.

Boao Super Hospital is part of the Hainan Boao Lecheng International Medical Tourism Pilot Zone, China's first pilot zone for medical tourism, where the government has given policy preferences such as lowering import tariffs on certain medications.