Daily Times

BEIJING: China Pakistan Medical Association (CPMA) was launched as part of the China-Pakistan Health Corridor to explore cooperation between the health and education sector of Pakistan and China, President of CPMA, Dr. Muhammad Shahbaz, said on Saturday.

The CPMA is a voluntary organization to achieve excellence in medical education, research, innovation, and training and promote leadership and therefore further the influence of Pakistani medical professionals and students in China,” he told APP in an interview.

He said that the China Pakistan Health Corridor concept inspired the initiative, and it is established to strengthen the medical cooperation between the two all-weather friends – Pakistan and China.

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Pakistan and China and the 8th anniversary of the Belt & Road initiative. He said and added that China Pakistan Health Corridor is vital for the prosperity and healthy cooperation for Pakistan and China ties.

Dr. Shahbaz informed that China has vast healthcare facilities with 8 million health workers, including 3 million practicing doctors, 800,000 surgeons, 6 million nurses, and 27,215 hospitals. Doctor and medical staff exchange programs can be established to train doctors and medical staff in Pakistan.

He said, currently more than 7500 Pakistani medical students are studying here, and so far, more than 15,000 students have graduated from China since 2001. The majority of them have learned MBBS Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of surgery. A number of them have got Masters and Ph.D. Degrees. CPMA will play an important role in solving the problems of Pakistani Medical Students and doctors.

CPMA will provide a platform to promote Medical Education, Research, Innovation & Training and promote leadership. Therefore, further the influence of Pakistani Medical Professionals & students in the People’s Republic of China.

There are 281072 registered doctors with Pakistan Medical Commission in Pakistan, and a majority of these doctors need medical training and advanced medical equipment.

“Pakistan Medical Commission, the University of Health Sciences, College of Physicians and the Surgeons of Pakistan, and King Edward Medical University can cooperate with institutes to start medical and surgical training programs,” he suggested.

China has 102 surgical robots in 84 hospitals, plus advanced laparoscopic surgery machines. Pakistani doctors and surgeons could learn advanced medical and surgical skills, especially in the field of robotic and laparoscopic surgery, he added.

Dr. Shahbaz proposed that more hospitals could be established along CPEC so that Pakistani medical graduates from China could do internships and work in these hospitals.

Pakistan can learn a lot from the healthcare system of China. He further emphasized the need of mobile hospitals and big data centers using multidisciplinary links in the regional Healthcare center of China Pakistan Health Corridor.

About the Covid-19 pandemic, he said, it has provided Pakistan a unique opportunity to expand health cooperation with China. Information sharing and learning from Chinese expertise can be beneficial for the capacity building of Pakistani doctors.

It may be mentioned here that Dr. Shahbaz has received the “Ambassador of Silk Road Friendship Award from the Chinese Government for China Pakistan Health Corridor Project” in December 2020.