Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On October 19, 2022, the 18th Chinese Medical Brigade arrived in Guyana to begin a one-year medical mission. The 16-member team represented the first official Chinese medical delegation to Guyana since the COVID-19 pandemic. Team members were stationed at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Linden Hospital, and regional hospitals in Regions 2, 3, 5, 6, 9, and 10, including West Demerara Hospital, New Amsterdam Hospital, and others. Their specialties spanned general surgery, burns and plastic surgery, orthopedics, pediatrics, gynecology, nephrology, radiology, ophthalmology, anesthesiology, pathology, and Traditional Chinese Medicine. During the mission, the team performed more than 2,500 surgeries, treated over 10,000 patients, and conducted 10+ medical outreaches across the country. They also hosted laparoscopic workshops, a resident training program for 13 Guyanese doctors (see Record ID#107970), and partnered with CNOOC to launch a new medical scholarship program enabling Guyanese doctors to train at Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital in China (see Record ID#104307). The mission concluded with the arrival of the 19th Chinese Medical Brigade on September 22, 2023 and the 18th team’s return to China on September 26, 2023. The deployment marked the 30th anniversary of Chinese medical assistance to Guyana, with over 260 Chinese doctors sent since 1993.