By Fatou Saho
The third batch of Gambian doctors who left for training in China under the cooperative partnership between Sheng Jing Hospital of China Medical University and the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital, have returned last week.
The partnership established in 2017 with the aim of bringing gynaecology and endoscopy service to The Gambia, sends doctors and pri-operative nurses to China to acquire skills in minimal access invasive surgery.
Speaking at the welcoming ceremony, graced by families and the China Medical Team, Dr Salifu Gaye, a senior registrar in obstetrics at the EFSTH gynaecology department, expressed delight and gratitude over the opportunity while highlighting the significance of the training.
“When it comes to technology in laparoscopy and hysteroscopy, China is the best in the world. So being Gambian and having this opportunity to be taught by Chinese professors with instruments that are very expensive and rare is refreshing.”
He assured Gambians that the knowledge gained from the training will be utilised to help women overcome health complications.
Karamba Suwareh, a beneficiary of the six months intensive studies in China, said they have learned how to perfect carry out laparoscopic surgery on patients.
“Laparoscopy is one of the new innovations in surgical practice currently. It is a surgical method that you can use in minimal invasive. When we say minimal invasive, it means-without making many cuts on the patient during operations. The process is time efficient and can equally enhance the speedy recovery of patients who underwent the process,” Dr Suwareh noted.
The doctors also extended gratitude to the government of the People’s Republic of China and The Gambia for establishing a mechanism that seeks to better health care delivery in the West African country.
