Nightingale Prize Chinese winners recall their medical experience in foreign aid: care knows no borders

Beijing, 9 Sep (ZXS) -- Chinese winners of the Nightingale Prize recall their medical experience in aiding foreign countries: Care knows no borders

China News Agency reporter Li Chun

"People must be sincere in their dealings with each other, and they can feel each other, which knows no borders." Speaking about the medical experience of foreign aid, Zhao Xuehong, winner of the 49th Nightingale Award and deputy director of the Nursing Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, recently said in Beijing: "Care knows no borders. ”

This year marks the 60th anniversary of China's dispatch of foreign aid medical teams and the 40th anniversary of China's participation in the Nightingale Award. Since 1983, 90 outstanding nursing workers in China have received this award. A reporter from China News Agency recently interviewed two Nightingale Award winners with medical aid experience to understand how they practice the Red Cross spirit of "humanity, fraternity and dedication".

Humane care knows no borders

In 2015, Zhao Xuehong volunteered to accompany a Chinese medical team to Liberia, West Africa, to fight the Ebola epidemic. In the humble Banfang Hospital, Chinese medical team members fought the Ebola virus, known as the "blackboard of life", and the pungent disinfectant water and three-layer protective clothing wrapped in high temperature became their "armor".

One night, when Zhao Xuehong inspected the ward, she noticed that a child refused to fall asleep. "His eyes widened, and he felt a state of panic," Zhao recalled, "I saw that he was scared, so I asked him why he didn't sleep." ”

The boy replied in not very fluent English: "I am afraid, I dare not sleep, I am afraid that if I fall asleep, I may die." ”

"No, child, we will definitely cure your disease, I will accompany you, you can sleep in peace." Zhao Xuehong took the boy's thin hand and comforted him softly. Every night after that, she would go to the hospital room to accompany the child until he fell asleep.

In the ward, the medical team members wear layers of protective equipment, and the patients cannot see the appearance of these Chinese medical staff. When the boy eventually recovered and left the Ebola clinic in China, he saluted the health care workers. Zhao Xuehong called his name, and the boy was very happy: "I can hear your voice, you are the Chinese mother." ”

Data show that since 1963, China has sent 76,3 medical teams to 2 countries and regions, treating 9 million patients.

"A lot of the time we act as the eyes of the doctor, the voice of the patient, because the nurse has the longest contact with the patient." Zhao Xuehong said that people-to-people exchanges should be sincere and can be felt by each other, which knows no borders, and care knows no borders.

The nursing profession is in demand worldwide

In April 2020, the team of China-aided African anti-epidemic medical experts went to Ethiopia and Djibouti to guide the local fight against the new crown epidemic, including Jiang Yan, director of the nursing department of West China Hospital of Sichuan University.

Ethiopia has an average elevation of 3000,60 meters, while Djibouti is known as the "boiling steamer" with a surface temperature of nearly <> degrees Celsius. However, the greatest difficulty encountered by the Group was not the high temperature and humidity, but the lack of medical care.

Due to the lack of local water resources and almost no mask manufacturers, effective measures to prevent and control the spread of the epidemic, such as "frequent hand washing" and "wearing masks", are difficult to achieve on the African continent. Jiang Yan realized that China's successful experience in fighting the epidemic is difficult to transfer to Africa, and it is necessary to tap local potential and adapt measures to local conditions.

For example, when there is no water supply facility, medical staff install taps on buckets, plus foot pedals, and make simple "tap water" sinks as contactless hand hygiene facilities required for infection prevention and control in hospitals; There is no protective face screen, and medical staff take local materials and paste them with adhesive tape to complete personal protection. "We also suggested with the local government to mobilize local companies to produce masks."

Jiang Yan said that the goal of the Chinese medical expert group is not to teach Chinese medical technology to local medical staff, but to combine the local medical technology level to help them master the method of maximum protection and control of hospital sense.

Such anti-epidemic guidelines have also been welcomed by local governments. As the expert group was about to leave Ethiopia, the country's health authorities invited Chinese experts to conduct a nationwide training, hoping that more local medical staff would be aware of these prevention, control and treatment practices.

Over the past 60 years, while providing medical services, China's foreign aid medical teams have also trained more than 10,<> medical personnel for recipient countries, leaving behind "medical teams that cannot be taken away".

When asked if she would participate in foreign medical work if she had the opportunity, Jiang Yan's answer was simple: "I will go up." "You feel that the nursing profession is needed globally and will be proud of it." (End)