Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
On September 15, 2023, the Chinese ambassador to Kyrgyzstan attended a ceremony for the launch of the "Health Express - Bright Journey" program. This is the implementation of a promise by Xi Jinping at the 22nd meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), held September 2022, to provide 2,000 free cataract surgeries to SCO countries. One team, composed of seven members and coming from Peking University People's Hospital, operated in Bishkek at Eye Microsurgery Departments numbers 1 and 2 of the State Hospital of the Ministry of Health from September 12 to 28. Another team, from Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region People's Hospital, operated in Osh at the Joint Clinical Hospital of Osh Oblast from September 17 to 29. They performed cataract surgery on 668 patients, about 300 in each city. They also examined and gave advice to about 100 more patients. The program's completion ceremony was held on September 29, 2023, at Osh Interregional United Clinical Hospital. In Bishkek, preliminary examination and registration of patients took place at the National Hospital mobile clinic from August 7 to September 8, Monday through Friday, 9 am to 4 pm. The Chinese team also held training seminars for Kyrgyz medical personnel. One teacher and four students at Osh State University's Confucius Institute were sent as interpreters. Equipment was also donated; this is captured in the linked Record ID#103651.