Talent Gore
CHINA has donated medical equipment and consumables worth US$500 000 to develop a pulmonary and critical care centre at Parirenyatwa Hospital.
Health and Child Care Minister, Dr Douglas Mombeshora, and the Chinese Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zhou Ding, signed an agreement on the ‘Bright Journey Programme of Cataract’ surgery at the hospital, confirming a Chinese ophthalmologist medical team will be sent to carry out free cataract clinical operations and onsite training and academic exchanges with local medical personnel.
The team will also donate equipment, consumables, medicines and other supplies upon completing the task.
The donation includes equipment and consumables for the construction of pulmonary and critical care medicine specialty, equipment and services for remote medical platform and clinical skills training platform.
Dr Mombeshora thanked the Chinese government for the donation.
“As you all know the Bright Journey is not something new; it started in 2010 and again in 2012, a lot of patients benefited from the cataract extraction programme,” he said.
“Now there is a Memorandum of Understanding that has been signed to upscale the cataract camps that will be running in Zimbabwe in conjunction with the Chinese experts. We hope this will benefit our local ophthalmologists who will get more experience and exposure from the Chinese.
“We are very grateful for the equipment which will be going to the respiratory centre being established at Parirenyatwa Hospital.
“The equipment will go a long way to manage more patients and also train doctors, so it’s a donation that is worth every recognition.”
Ambassador Ding said it was not the first time that China had provided cataract surgery for Zimbabwean patients.
“This is not the first time that China provides cataract surgery for Zimbabwean patients. China initiated two “Bright Journey” programmes in Zimbabwe in 2010 and 2012, helping over 800 local cataract patients,” he said.