Dr. DAI Dechun and Dr. QIAO Zhiming, Captain, the 16th Chinese Medical Brigade

IN order to help the Government of Guyana effectively fight the COVID-19 epidemic, the 16th Chinese Medical Brigade assisted China’s Embassy in Guyana in donating an automatic nucleic acid-extraction system and relevant reagents to Guyana’s Ministry of Health on October 9, 2020. The device was sponsored by the Government of Jiangsu Province of China.
The device that was urgently needed was helpful for improving the nucleic acid-detection capability and realise the automatic extraction of viruses from samples. The detection efficiency would be increased by four times, which would play a key role in the prevention and control of the COVID-19 epidemic. On December 2, 2020, we donated a set of ventilators and oxygen generator to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), to help the hospital effectively cope with the growing epidemic and improve the treatment capacity for severe respiratory diseases.

On December 22, 2020, we again donated medical equipment to the GPHC with non-contact tonometer and special surgical instruments of surgery and orthopaedics and obstetrics and gynaecology. In particular, we donated one set of fibre bronchoscope; one set of portable colour Doppler ultrasound; one set of fibre-optic laryngoscopes; one set of computer infusion pumps; 450 puncture needles for epidural anaesthesia and spinal anaesthesia. We successfully established anaesthesia visualisation technology centre of China medical team, sponsored by the National Health Commission of China in GPHC. Breakthroughs had been achieved on the basis of frank communication and cooperation in the face of difficult diseases. Dr.Zhang Xiangxin, Consultant of Joint Orthopaedics, made accurate diagnoses and treatment of pathological dislocation of hip joint caused by hip infection in child, and led the medical team in the department to discuss repeatedly. Dr. Zhang designed surgical scheme; preparation of surgical instruments; prevention of intraoperative risks; and a post-operative rehabilitation plan, among other things. With the cooperation of Dr. Qu Hui, Consultant of Anaesthesiology, and other Guyanese counterparts, Dr. Zhang successfully completed the first Salter pelvic osteotomy at the GPHC. The patient recovered well after the operation.

In the face of a premature baby, a self-made tool played an important role in life-saving, with full of love accompanying. Dr. Wang Xuli, Consultant of paediatrics, kept calm in the face of premature infants with birth weight of only 2460g and accompanied by asphyxia and hypoxia. To overcome the shortage of medical equipment at the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC), she made a life-saving tool by adapting to local conditions to save the life of a fresh and young baby in danger. She and her team worked together in a race against time. They skilfully used a sodium chloride physiological solution bottle, oxygen hose and tape to make liquid sealing bottle, and then connected the nasal catheter to make a simple breathing apparatus. They took turns to pressurise and oxygenate the manual-resuscitation capsule to maintain the pulse and oxygen stability and ensure the safe transportation of the baby to the Georgetown Public Hospital for nearly 12 hours. Dr. Pan Jianhua, Consultant of Anaesthesiology, introduced the use of light-stick intubation technology to create a precedent in the history of the Linden hospital, which could greatly shorten the intubation time to less than six seconds, reduce the occurrence of patients choking and let the operator stay away from the high-risk, exposed parts such as the head and face of the patient to greatly decrease the risk of infection for medical staff.

The medical team members dare to show their talent and brought hopes to local patients in case of emergency and severe illness. Dr. Yuan Zheng, Consultant of General surgery; Dr. Qin Gongzhao, Consultant of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and Dr. Pan Jianhua, had performed the emergency operation of septic shock caused by oviduct ovarian abscess successfully in the early morning of December 21, 2020, at the Linden Hospital Complex (LHC). The rich experience, accurate judgment, powerful execution, superb surgical skills and multidisciplinary cooperation were the keys to the success of rescue. All the past is the prologue, all the future is expectable! In response to the proposal of President Xi Jinping of China, that China is willing to continue to uphold the community of human destiny, we work together with Guyana to respect each other and build a health community with a shared future to welcome the dawn of victory over COVID-19.