Chinese medical team helps Ghanaian hospital improve radiology services

Du Yushan (R), leader of the 12th batch of the Chinese medical team in Ghana, checks a machine at LEKMA Hospital in Accra, Ghana, on March 4, 2024. (Photo by Seth/Xinhua)

ACCRA, March 5 (Xinhua) -- The 12th batch of the Chinese medical team in Ghana has helped a Ghanaian hospital improve its radiology services over the past year, benefiting thousands of local patients.

LEKMA Hospital, a general hospital where the Chinese medical team is based, has been lacking radiology equipment and techniques for years, posing a challenge to disease diagnosis, Du Yushan, the team's leader, told Xinhua in an interview on Monday.

"The whole hospital has only one X-ray machine, but that does not mean we should lower the standard. Instead, we have successfully made use of the machine to expand medical examinations such as the esophagus checkup," said Du, who is also a radiologist.

Du said the Chinese medical team helped the hospital establish an effective system of filing radiology reports to better describe patients' conditions, allowing for more accurate disease diagnoses.

"For acute diseases, we can now provide checkup results promptly, which helps the doctors make rapid diagnoses," Du added.

Dennis Amartey Ahia, the deputy chief radiographer at the hospital, said the hospital has been fortunate over the years that every batch of the Chinese medical team has had a radiologist among the doctors to provide this critical intervention for patients.

"In general, there are very few radiologists in the country, so this cooperation has been very helpful to us over the past years," Ahia said.

Ahia said the support from the Chinese medical team has also brought economic benefits to the locals, who can access services at the hospital at subsidized rates, helping them save money.

The current Chinese medical team, which comprises 11 medical specialists in various fields from south China's Guangdong Province, will wrap up their year-long mission in late March.

Du Yushan, leader of the 12th batch of the Chinese medical team in Ghana, looks at an X-ray image at LEKMA Hospital in Accra, Ghana, on March 4, 2024. (Photo by Seth/Xinhua)