Feature: Chinese medical care safeguards Barbadians' well-being

BRIDGETOWN, June 25 (Xinhua) -- "The long-term Chinese medical team is really unique to our hospital," said Anthony Harris, director of medical services at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Barbados, expressing his gratitude for the contribution of the Chinese medical team in the country.

As a surgeon who had witnessed Chinese doctors' treatment in the operating room, Harris said Chinese medics are very enthusiastic and serious about their work, and always work closely with their local colleagues in Barbados.

Since December 2016, the hospital, being the largest and highest-level public general hospital in Barbados and holding a prominent position as a leading medical center in the Caribbean, has benefited from the expertise of five batches of Chinese foreign aid medical teams dispatched by Chongqing Municipality in southwest China. These dedicated teams have effectively brought Chinese medical services to the Caribbean island country.

Among the dedicated members of the Chinese medical team was He Ping, the chief surgeon of the trauma department at the Chongqing Emergency Medical Center. He joined the third Chinese medical team to Barbados, arriving in the country in July 2018 and returning to China in September 2019.

During his stay in Barbados, he always worked on the front line in the operating and emergency rooms, participating in 96 emergency operations and saving 19 critically ill patients.

"We had some challenges with our human resources as it relates to delivering care at the hospital," said Chaynie Williams, one of the medical staff at the hospital. "(Chinese medical teams) have contributed tremendously to sustaining and maintaining our services."

Almost every Chinese doctor and nurse on the medical team to Barbados taught their skills to local colleagues.

At the end of 2020, Liu Dan, an anesthetist at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University came to Barbados for medical aid. She gained many local "students" shortly after demonstrating her technical advantages.

Some of the interns and the experienced consultant doctors at the hospital even needed to book an appointment to see her demonstration.

"Traditional Chinese medicine also was gaining popularity with the local residents. And it's something that we want to also have as part of our holistic patient-centered care at the hospital," Williams said.

According to Deng Li, deputy director of the Chongqing Municipal Health Commission, the Chinese medical teams in Barbados have treated more than 38,000 clinical cases, and China has also sent experts to Barbados on a short-term basis to carry out knee replacement and other operations free of charge to solve local medical technical problems.

The advanced medical technology displayed by the Chinese medical teams has attracted seven Barbadian doctors to study at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University.

"Through individual instruction, their professional theory and technical operation ability have been greatly improved, which has laid a solid foundation for them to carry out the medical techniques after returning to Barbados," said Xu Ping, party chief of the Chinese hospital.