Feature: Chinese doctor's "safe, warm" hands help old farmer in Botswana walk again

GABORONE, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Living in Matsitama village in eastern Botswana, 78-year-old Ketsetletse Mosi staggered on the road after he undertook surgeon 20 days ago. He said it was a Chinese doctor who helped him walk again.

Mosi was rounding up goats on a chilly evening early this month when he fell on the ground and broke his hip. "Little did I know that the injury was serious because I struggled to wake up the following morning," he said.

He was later sent to Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital in Francistown, Botswana's second largest city, where a group of Chinese doctors work. After arriving at the hospital, Mosi said he was received by Lyu Peimin, a Chinese doctor, whose hands are "safe and warm."

Lyu is a member of the 16th Chinese medical team to Botswana. Over the past four decades, a total of 16 batches of more than 500 Chinese medical members have come to the country, delivering medical services to local people. They have performed more than 130,000 surgeries and treated more than 2.8 million patients since 1980s, winning praise from the government and the people.

Lyu referred Mosi to a computerized tomography scan and tried to comfort him by saying that the pain he was feeling would disappear. "He then studied the scan and took me to an operating theatre to perform an implant of the broken hip bone," said Mosi.

Since then, Lyu started teaching Mosi to walk, and the old man made excellent progress with the Chinese doctor's help. Mosi said many people could not believe that he was able to walk again.

"This Chinese doctor is very important. I wish he will remain working here in Botswana forever," Mosi said.

Kobamelo Motshidisi, clinical manager at Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital, said the contribution of the Chinese doctors has been affirmed by the local people. "In the past, patients at this hospital with similar injuries would spend months and months in the health facility," he said, adding that "some of the patients with similar injuries would never walk again."

Some people chose to seek treatment in neighboring South Africa, however, at a heavy cost, as Botswana does not have sufficient medical staff, he said.

After the Chinese doctors came to the country, "we could perform complex surgeries at Nyangabgwe Referral Hospital," said Motshidisi.

Modiri Jojo Lucas, deputy mayor of the Francistown City Council, hailed mutual respect between Botswana and China, saying that the world's second largest economy has been helping the southern African country in many areas.

"Having them in the city brings hope to our people. We ought to say thank you to China," Lucas said.