Locals urged to visit Chinese medical ship

For the next seven days, China’s hospital ship, Silk Road Ark, will be docked at the Bridgetown Port offering free medical checks to Barbadians this Christmas season.

The 10 000-tonne ocean travelling hospital vessel, equipped with 14 clinical wards and seven auxiliary diagnostic and support departments, will also carry out medical exchanges and companionship activities with the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) and local medical professionals.

Yesterday, the crew of the Silk Road Ark welcomed a delegation from the Ministry of Health and the BDF aboard for an exclusive tour of the facilities which include 300 beds, eight operating theatres and more than 2 400 pieces of medical equipment.

The ship is also capable of providing over 60 types of examinations, treatments, and surgical procedures in fields such as general surgery, orthopaedics, obstetrics and gynaecology, ophthalmology, therapy and traditional Chinese medicine.

“We have a medical team of 120 persons and they all come from the renowned hospitals of China,” Captain Bo Li said through an interpreter. For the duration of its stay, the medical facilities will be open from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

It will be closed on Christmas Eve, December 24, as it leaves its dock at the Bridgetown Port for the day. Preparations are being made to provide shuttle service from the Kensington Mall, Fontabelle, to the port and the ship.

The process for boarding and consultation includes the patients first filling in their personal information and a doctor conducting a preliminary diagnosis based on their chief complaint. A corresponding coloured card is assigned to a patient based on their condition.

Emergency cases are prioritised. For others, the patient then waits in queue with a triage list coloured card for boarding. Once they board, their registration is checked and they visit the respective department based on their triage list.

Chief Medical Officer Dr The Most Honourable Kenneth George encouraged Barbadians to take advantage of the opportunity for free medical examinations.

Speaking with the media after the culmination of the tour, George complimented the hospital ship’s capacity and noted it offered an opportunity to support the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

“We have encouraged the Queen Elizabeth Hospital to take a look at their backlog, particularly for ambulatory services, meaning people who walk in, get surgeries on the same day, and leave.

“So we hope that this will smooth itself out and we hope that at least a few people will get some interventions,” he added.

In 2015, the Chinese Navy Hospital Ship Peace Ark visited Barbados, providing medical services to the public.

George said the Silk Road Ark’s visit was more than just the delivery of health care and signalled the deepening ties between Barbados and China.

(JRN)

Brigadier Carlos Lovell Chief of Staff of the Barbados Defence Force

(centre) accompanied by Chinese Ambassador to Barbados Zheng Bingkai ( right), Captain Bo Li (left) and other officials during the tour of the ship.

Chief Medical Officer Dr The Most Honourable Kenneth George encouraged Barbadians to take advantage of the Silk Road Ark’s time in the country.

(Pictures by Reco Moore.)