At 9:00 am on March 24, Huang Minghui, director and Party secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Health Commission walked into in a ward of the Port Moresby General Hospital of Papua New Guinea.

He sent panda toys and autographed postcards to eight patients and asked them in detail about their recovery after surgery.

Huang was head of the China (Chongqing) short-term medical expert group, which offered medical help in the country from March 18 to 24 at the invitation of the Chinese embassy in PNG.

They conducted urological surgeries for eight patients with severe conditions with the help of members of the city’s ninth medical team to PNG and the staff of the Port Moresby General Hospital.

It was the first time that a short-term expert group was sent to PNG for medical services, the first time enucleation of the prostate was conducted in the country, and the first time that the Sino-PNG Urinary Surgery Academic Forum was held.

"We also plan to invite four doctors from the Port Moresby General Hospital to Chongqing for a half-year free clinical study," Huang said.

Since 2002, the Chongqing Municipal Health Commission has sent nine medical teams, with a total of 90 specialists, to the country.

They have treated 113,000 people in PNG, carried out more than 5,000 complex operations, and brought more than 100 latest technologies in the fields of neurosurgery, maxillofacial surgery, urology, radiology, anesthesiology, and others.

The teams have also donated a large number of urgently needed medical equipment and medicines to local hospitals, which have greatly promoted the development of local medical and health services. 

Huang also visited the residence of the ninth medical team, where Huang expressed his high respect and gratitude for their contribution to foreign medical aid and affirmed their achievements. 

Director Huang Minghui sends panda toys and autographed postcards to a patient. [Photo/people.cn] 

Photo of the ninth medical team [Photo/people.cn]