Chinese doctors brave COVID-19 to treat patients in western Cameroon

YAOUNDE, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) -- In the early morning of a working day, a makeshift but comprehensive Chinese clinic in Bangante, a small town in Cameroon's West region, was already full of local patients.

Among them was 70-year-old Rose Nya who had been suffering from cataract for more than 10 years.

"I have headache and eye problem and that is causing me to have uncontrollable running nose," said Nya, a mother of four, while waiting impatiently for a 21-member team of Chinese specialty doctors, who had arrived in the town Thursday for a two-day free consultation and treatment campaign.

Bangante is surrounded by many rural communities with abundant wildlife and dispersed settlements, but without hospitals. Villagers are often troubled by such health problems as typhoid, malaria, cataract, rheumatism, but most of them, like Martin Ngamga, 68, who trekked for over 20 km to benefit from the campaign, cannot afford medical services.

"I learned about the consultation on radio station and whatsApp groups. If Chinese medicine can help me better than the others I will be very happy because the medicine is free. Do you know that there are people that die because they do not have the means (to treat themselves)?" Ngamga asked as he joined Nya on the queue.

As COVID-19 infections persist in the central African nation, stoking fear and anxiety in the public, Chinese medical doctors have continued to treat patients with various ailments, underlining the cordial health cooperation China and Cameroon enjoy, said Tian Yuan, head of Chinese medical team in Cameroon, at the ceremony to launch the campaign.

"Our sole objective is to permit patients to benefit from high quality Chinese medical services and let them feel love from the other side of the world without stepping out of the country. We will do our best with love and efforts to help citizens in need," Tian said while addressing Nya and hundreds other patients who had congregated at the premises of Bangante council to be consulted and treated.

Eric Niat, mayor of Bangante council, thanked Chinese doctors for braving COVID-19 to provide healthcare services to the local people.

"Thanks to the excellent Sino-Cameroon health cooperation, we decided to invite the Chinese team of experts to help our population. This event was organized because in our country we are so behind in terms of providing health care to our populations especially in rural environment like ours. So it was necessary to organize the event with the help of China," said the 47-year-old mayor.

After the launch ceremony in the day, a good number of patients from nearby villages and Bangante lined up to see doctors from various departments, who were here as members of the 21th Chinese medical team to Cameroon.

Nya and Ngamga were among the first patients to be consulted.

For the first time in almost 12 years, Ngamga felt relieved when his sickness was detected through an echography. Before this, he had visited doctors several times but results were not satisfactory.

"I can already smile but I will not laugh yet because the doctor has told me that he has discovered what is disturbing me. He said, it is a renal cyst and reassured me that I will be fine when it's operated upon," said Ngamga, a father of eight, smiling.

Nya was offered Chinese medication for her condition. "I am very happy. All this (consultation and treatment) free of charge? I thank the Chinese for coming to help. I had to travel to the hospital tomorrow but now that I have my drugs, I can only say thank you."

A total of over 300 patients received diagnosis and treatments for Thursday.

Mayor Niat said his people were marveled at and impressed by the kindness and efficiency of the Chinese doctors.

"(I) am really thankful to China for these people (Chinese doctors) coming here. They are so great, so friendly and really taking care of our population. So it's something that we wish we gonna renew in future," the mayor said.

For Wang Haijun, a 44-year-old acupuncturist, helping the people during the free healthcare campaign was fulfilling.

Cameroon is his first mission post in Africa. But before arriving Cameroon, he had spent more than 13 years in Taiyuan, the capital of China's Shanxi Province, teaching about the Chinese traditional method of treatment.

"I hope to transfer some of my skills to some Cameroonians before leaving," Wang said.

The free clinic ran from Thursday to Friday.

As part of the campaign, the medical team donated anti-COVID-19 supplies including surgical and face masks and several pieces of personal protective equipment to the Bangante council.

China started to dispatch medical teams to Cameroon in 1975 and 711 medical professionals have worked in Cameroon since then.