Stories of Hubei Doctors in Africa

Edited by Ma Yalun & Ning Fang

“I’m from the East and have come to fulfill my dream: to heal the wounded and save the dying, and to pursue and glorify the benevolent spirit of the doctor.” This is copied from the diary of a Hubei doctor who has worked in Africa.

In April of 1963, China sent its first medical team of 24 people to Africa at the request of the Algerian government and under the deployment of Premier Zhou Enlai. This team mainly consisted of medical practitioners from Hubei Province and was dispatched to Algeria to help this newly independent North African country. This was the beginning of the history of China’s foreign aid medical care.

Over the past 56 years, the Hubei Foreign Aid Medical Team has carried out extensive medical services in recipient countries and left their footprints all over the land. From resident hospitals to pastoral areas in the desert, they have created countless stories of friendship between Chinese and African people.

Expedition to North Africa by the “Hubei-made” Foreign Aid Medical Team

“I Don’t know when I can come back… If it’s a boy, call him Bin; if a girl, call her Wen...” After 56 years, Xu Xianze still remembered these words he said to his pregnant wife when he was dispatched overseas as part of the first medical team. At the time of departure, he said these words to his wife, bid goodbye to his family, and left in a hurry with a bag full of notes. Now, Xu Xianze is 83 years old and retired from Hubei Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

When the medical team first arrived at Saïda Provincial Hospital of Algeria, they admitted a female patient with a lump in her abdomen. After a laparotomy, she was diagnosed with spleen cysticercosis and was treated with surgery. It is understood that this disease is quite common in the grassland area. Pharmacist Lyu Xuexiu successfully created a test reagent in a short period of time, and used it for diagnosing and treating would-be patients.

“My surgery was done by a Chinese doctor!” A patient with gastric ulcer pyloric obstruction proudly announced after he was discharged from Saïda Hospital. This patient had a subtotal gastrectomy and recovered very well.

At Saïda Hospital, the Chinese medical team treated a large number of patients with common and frequently-occurring diseases, as well as epidemics. Moreover, they helped with expanding the hospital’s medical services to various aspects, and gradually filled in the blanks of major surgeries and difficult treatments. Fame quickly spread throughout Algeria, and Chinese doctors became the “most popular people” in local areas. The footprints of patrolling doctors from the Hubei medical team kept extending on the vast grasslands of North Africa.

Saïda Province is on the edge of the world-famous Sahara Desert. All the twenty-four members of the medical team traveled back and forth across the vast pastoral areas, undertaking all the inpatient and outpatient treatments in this provincial hospital with 280 beds. After eight months’ work, they were called “the most reliable people” by local government and people. Traditional Chinese Medicine and acupuncture therapy were known as the “Chinese magic needle treatment.” In December of the same year, Premier Zhou Enlai and Vice Premier Chen Yi cordially met with the team. After hearing their stories, Premier Zhou was delighted and said: “Keep up with your hard work, treat the health of Algerian people as the health of Chinese people.” “Carry forward the spirit of Henry Norman Bethune.”

“It’s been 56 years, and I can still hear Premier Zhou’s voice in my mind.” Xu Xianze was full of emotions while recalling his story.

Miracles Across National Borders

By working closely with local medical staff in Algeria and Lesotho, Chinese medical teams saved countless people and created countless medical miracles with their sincerity and superb medical skills.

In Algeria, the medical team of Relizane Province fought for 11 hours in a strenuous surgery for a printing worker whose right hand was cut off from the wrist by a paper cutter. The hand was miraculously restored and the patient regained the ability to work and live as usual, which was a precedent of replantation in the country. The Médéa provincial medical team successfully performed a leg replantation operation for a 67-year-old farmer, and used acupuncture anesthesia to remove a huge ovarian cyst for an elderly woman in her 60s. The Guelma medical team removed a meningocele that was twice as large as the head for a 4-day-old newborn. The Mascara team performed a total nasal reconstruction operation on a little girl who had her nose bitten off by a donkey.

In Lesotho, the medical team had to face harsh natural environment and the risk of AIDS, yet they still carried out their medical activities with enthusiasm and devotion. Among all the difficult operations they took on, there were hip replacement surgeries, congenital clubfoot corrections, and aorta dissection vascular anastomosis.

When natural disasters occurred in the recipient country, the medical teams always tried their hardest to fight for patients. In 1980, a strong earthquake happened in El Asnam (now known as Chlef) of Algeria. The medical team worked around the clock, collecting 670,000 milliliters of blood and saving 620 wounded people from danger. In 1982, a cholera epidemic broke out in Algeria. the medical team went deep into the affected area, treated more than 800 patients and stemmed the spread of the disease. In 1989, a collective food poisoning incident occurred in Aïn Defla Province, the medical team there quickly acted and rescued all of the patients—more than 250 in number. In May of 2003, a strong earthquake took place near Algiers, the capital, and the local medical team actively participated in the rescuing work.

Chinese and local doctors are close as family in Tiaret.蒂亚雷医疗队与当地医生亲如一家

The medical teams applied Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and acupuncture in their work and created many “TCM miracles” by combining Chinese with Western medicine. In Algeria, a female patient fell into a coma due to a car accident. Her family drove 150 kilometers and took her to the Chinese medical team in Médéa. The medical staff selected the acupuncture points properly and applied their needles skillfully. Magically, her pulse started to build again. And her tendons began to tremble rhythmically. Three days later, the woman awoke; one month later, she recovered and was discharged from the hospital.

In the process of saving patients, many medical team members have donated their blood and skin. Some dedicated their lives to this land. Three team members now rest on the land forever due to diseases caused by constant and intense overwork and were buried in the National Cemetery of Algeria.

Many of the medical staff joined the team and came to Africa more than once because of their love for their African friends. Tu Dachun, an orthopedic doctor, participated on the medical team four times over 20 years; Xu Changzhen, an obstetrician, came to Africa four times and delivered more than 40,000 newborns in 8 years. And then there is Cao Rong, who’s racing with lives; Tan Qiong, who was close to HIV infections on at least two occasions; Cheng Li, who was called “Angel Doctor” by Algerians; and Shen Ali whose family members came to Africa for three generations, successively.

The 25th medical team to Algeria from Hubei 湖北省第25批援阿尔及利亚医疗队

The medical teams gave their best interpretation of the spirit of “Medical Benevolence” by their work across national borders. They had established a good image for “Chinese doctors” and the “Hubei medical field”—and also showed their love for the world.

Teach a Man to Fish, the New Era of Foreign Aid Medical Care

Over the past 56 years, Hubei Province has dispatched a total of 3,445 medical personnel (mainly practitioners from the department of obstetrics, gynecology, anesthesiology, acupuncture, and surgery), who treated 23.91 million outpatients and 2.32 million inpatients and performed 1.688 million operations of all kinds. At present, the 25th medical team in Algeria consists of 76 doctors, and the 13th medical team of 9 doctors is working in Lesotho.

With the development of China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the promotion of the “Community of Human Destiny” concept, China’s foreign aid medical care has gradually shifted from simply exporting personnel and technology to cultivating local capabilities in medical skills and the modern healthcare industry for the recipient countries, so as to leave a local team behind which never leaves the country.

In recent years, to answer the request of Algerian government, the Hubei medical team has undertaken part of the teaching tasks in the affiliated nursing school of Médéa Provincial Hospital. Since Chinese acupuncture is widely welcomed in Algeria, the medical team has held many acupuncture training classes and taught traditional Chinese acupuncture techniques. They have also adopted multiple learning forms such as assistant programs and small classrooms to help improve the medical skills of Algerian staff. The academic reports and surgical performances such as “limb replantation” and “clinical observation of acupuncture-based numbness” were especially well received by their Algerian counterparts. According to certain statistics, the aiding medical team has trained more than 3,000 medical personnel at all levels, most of which have the ability to treat common diseases as well as independently perform surgeries. They have become the pillars of local medical institutions.

In 2014, after consultations with the Algerian Ministry of Health and the Chinese Embassy in Algeria, Hubei Province of China and Algeria agreed to conduct cooperation between Tongji Hospital, which is affiliated with the Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology and the Mustafa Hospital of Algeria. The principle of this cooperation is mutual benefit and complementary advantages, the main focus is gynecology and obstetrics, and the goal is to train personnel and conduct clinical research. The two sides agreed to establish a Traditional Chinese Medicine Center in Ben Acron Hospital in accordance with laws and regulations of both the countries and the hospital’s situations, so as to promote TCM practice and technology.

In November of 2017, China and Algeria signed an agreement to establish a cooperative hospital as well as a center of gynecology, obstetrics, and TCM. In November of 2018, in the presence of Hubei Provincial Health Committee and corresponding Algerian government departments, Tongji Hospital and the Hubei Provincial Hospital of TCM signed with their Algerian counterparts respectively two memorandums for cooperation, namely China-Algeria Maternity Center and China-Algeria TCM Center, which officially heralded the substantive cooperation between the two parties. “我来自世界的东方，为了一个美好的梦想；救死扶伤是我的责任与担当，医者仁心是我们的追求与荣光。”这是一位援非医生日记中的话语。

湖北天使的“非洲传奇”

编辑/马亚伦 宁 芳

Yin Xianqin, an obstetrician and gynecologist, delivering a newborn baby with local doctors in Motebang Hospital, Lesotho 妇产科医生印贤琴带领莱索托莫特邦医院年轻医生，共同迎接新生命

1963年4月，应阿尔及利亚政府请求，在周恩来总理亲自部署下，中国派出第一支以湖北医务人员为骨干的24人医疗队远赴非洲，帮助这个刚刚独立的北非之国，由此掀开了中国援外医疗的历史篇章。

56年来，湖北援外医疗队在受援国广泛开展医疗服务，从驻地医院到沙漠牧区，都留下了他们的足迹和中非人民友谊长存的佳话。

“湖北造”援外医疗队远征北非

“什么时候回来还不知道，你要是生个男孩就叫彬，生个女孩就叫纹……”今年83岁的湖北省中医院退休医生徐贤泽，清晰地记得56年前随同首支援外医疗队出发时的情景，他给怀孕妻子留下这句话，并告别家人，拎起装好一摞摞笔记的挎包，匆忙离去。

在2018年天猫618节，各种品牌商家联合天猫官方微博，推出了618“天选之子”活动，并于6月12日6时18分进行抽奖，且在6月18日送达包裹，相应的获奖礼品也相当诱人，最终的展现形式为618个天猫包裹的寄出。此次活动最终以微博评论30多万，转发48.4万收尾，比之前的海尔增加了一倍多。

初到阿国赛义达省医院，医疗队收治了一位腹部有肿块的女患者，经剖腹探查，确诊为脾脏包囊虫病，并对其进行了手术治疗。据了解，这种病在草原属多发疾病，药剂师吕学修短期内试制出检查试剂，成功为其后患者确诊治疗。

“我的手术是中国医生给我做的！”一位患胃溃疡幽门梗阻的病人，在赛义达医院做完胃大部切除手术康复出院后，骄傲地向身边人夸耀。

中国医疗队在赛义达医院，不仅收治了大量常见病、多发病和流行病患者，从多方面大大拓宽了医院的医疗范围，还陆续填补了大型外科手术和疑难重症治疗的空白，医院的名声很快传遍了阿尔及利亚各地，中国医生成为当地“最受欢迎的人”，湖北医疗队巡医的足迹从此不断向广袤的北非草原延伸。

Doctors from the Hubei Foreign Aid Medical Team gladly chatting with the locals in their households 援阿医疗队员受邀到群众家作客

赛义达省处在世界闻名的撒哈拉沙漠边上，24名队员在广大牧区巡回医疗，几乎承担了拥有280张病床的省医院所有住院、门诊治疗任务。工作8个多月后，他们被该国政府与广大人民称为“最可信任的人”。中国中医药、针灸疗法被誉为中国神针“利白拉”（阿拉伯语，打针）。同年12月，周恩来总理和陈毅副总理亲切接见大家，并听取了医疗队的汇报。听到这些故事后，周总理非常高兴，当即指示：“你们要更好地工作，把阿尔及利亚人民的健康当作中国人民的健康一样对待。”“你们要学习发扬白求恩精神。”

“时光一晃56年，周总理的声音一直回荡铭刻在我心中。” 徐贤泽讲述这段历史时感慨万千。

接力演绎跨越国界的“生命奇迹”

中国医疗队队员与阿尔及利亚、莱索托医务人员密切合作，用真挚的情谊和高超的医术，拯救了难以计数的百姓，创下了一个个医学奇迹。

某印刷工人的右手被切纸刀从腕关节切断，阿尔及利亚赫力赞省医疗分队经过11个小时的紧张手术，奇迹般地接活了这只手，使病人重新获得了劳动和生活的能力，开创了阿国断手再植的先河；梅迪亚省医疗分队成功地为一位67岁的老农做了断腿再植手术，还利用针刺麻醉为一位60多岁的老年农妇摘除了巨大的卵巢囊肿；盖尔玛医疗分队为出生仅4天的新生儿切除了比头大一倍的脑脊膜膨出；马斯卡拉分队为一个被驴咬掉鼻子的小女孩实施了全鼻再造手术……在莱索托，医疗队员面对恶劣的自然环境的威胁和感染艾滋病的风险，以饱满的工作热情积极开展医疗活动，完成了髋关节置换术、先天性马蹄内翻足矫正术、肱主动脉离断血管吻合术等难度较大的手术。

Algerian doctors having acupuncture training under the guidance of doctors from the Hubei Foreign Aid Medical Team 援阿医疗队培训当地针灸医生，学员相互扎针

当受援国自然灾害发生时，医疗队员奋不顾身、竭尽全力抢救病人。1980年，阿尔及利亚阿斯南地区发生强烈地震，医疗队夜以继日，采血67万毫升，帮助620余名伤者脱离危险；1982年，阿尔及利亚霍乱流行，医疗队深入疫区，救治患者800多人，迅速控制疫情蔓延；1989年，阿国艾因赛夫拉省发生集体食物中毒事件，驻该省医疗分队迅速施救，250余名病人全部获救；2003年5月，阿首都阿尔及尔附近发生强烈地震，医疗队员积极参加救援工作。

医疗队员充分发挥中医中药和针灸的作用，经常运用中西医结合方法上演“中医神迹”。阿国一位女病人遭遇车祸处于弥留状态，家属驱车150公里将她抬到中国医疗队梅迪亚分队驻地。医疗队员谨慎选穴，熟练进针，昏死中的妇女脉搏居然神奇般地循行起来，相关部位的肌腱也开始有节奏地抖颤。3天后，妇女苏醒了；1个月后，她康复出院。

为了挽救病人的生命，很多队员献血、献皮，有的甚至献出了宝贵的生命。阿尔及利亚国家公墓安葬着3名中国医疗队员，他们因紧张而繁重的工作积劳成疾，长眠在这块土地上。

许多队员因割舍不下对非洲朋友的感情，多次援非。骨科大夫涂大椿，20年间4次参加援阿医疗队；妇产科医生徐长珍4次援非，累计8年时间里成功接生了4万多名胎儿。与生命赛跑的曹蓉、两次与艾滋病感染擦肩而过的谭琼、被阿尔及利亚人称为“天使医生”的程丽、三代援非的沈阿利家庭……他们对“医者仁心”作出了跨越国界的注解，树立起了“中国医生”和“湖北卫生”的良好形象，向世界展示了湖北人悬壶济世的博爱情怀！

Ye Xiuying, a Hubei TCM doctor, is conducting auricular treatment for an Algerian patient. 援阿医生叶秀英为当地患者进行耳穴治疗

授之以渔，援外医疗迈进新时代

56年来，中国湖北省累计派出援外医疗队员3445人（主要来自妇产科、麻醉科、针灸科、外科等科室），共收治门诊病人2391万人次，住院病人232万人次，开展各类手术168.8万例。目前，第25批援阿尔及利亚医疗队76人，第13批援莱索托医疗队9人正在非洲执行任务。

伴随中国“一带一路”倡议的建设步伐和“人类命运共同体”外交思想发展，中国援外医疗逐渐由单纯输出人员、技术，转向培育受援国医疗卫生服务能力，为各国“留下一支支永不离开的医疗队”。

近年来，根据阿尔及利亚政府的要求，中国湖北省医疗队承担了梅迪亚省医院附属护士学校的部分教学任务。中国针灸在阿尔及利亚受到普遍欢迎，医疗队多次举办针灸培训班，毫无保留地传授中国传统针灸技术。他们还采取传帮带和小课堂等形式，帮助提高阿方医务人员技术水平，尤其是“断肢再植”“针刺麻木临床观察”等学术报告和手术表演，深受阿方同行欢迎。据不完全统计，援阿医疗队已培训各级医技人员3000余名。经过培训的医技人员大多具备了治疗常见病、疑难病和独立手术的能力，成为各地医疗机构的技术骨干。

2014年，经与阿尔及利亚卫生部和中国驻阿大使馆经商处商议，中国湖北省和阿方分别确定华中科技大学同济医学院附属同济医院与阿尔及利亚穆斯塔法医院，按照互利共赢、优势互补的原则，以妇产科为突破，在人才培养和临床研究等方面开展对口合作；议定在本·阿克隆医院建立中国中医中心，根据两国法律法规和医院实际，循序渐进地开展中医实用技术的推广使用。

2017年11月，中国与阿尔及利亚签署了建立对口合作医院及妇产、中医中心协议。2018年11月，在湖北省卫生健康委员会与阿尔及利亚政府部门见证下，同济医院、湖北省中医院分别与对口医院签署了“中阿妇产中心”“中阿中医中心”合作备忘录，正式启动双方的实质性合作。（原载《湖北日报》）

Note:

Henry Norman Bethune（1890-1939）, a Canadian physician, medical innovator, and noted communist. Dr. Bethune effectively brought modern medicine to rural China and often treated sick villagers as much as wounded soldiers. His selfless commitment made a profound impression on the Chinese people, especially CPC’s leader, Mao Zedong. Mao Zedong wrote a eulogy to him, which was memorized by generations of Chinese people.