My story of aid to Tibet
Cheng Xinqi is the deputy chief physician
Peking Union Medical College Hospital
Laboratory
Ten years ago, as a member of the 14th batch of medical aid teams of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, I first set foot on this magical land, and worked in the People's Hospital of the Tibet Autonomous Region for three months since August 2011, drafting the "Twelfth Five-Year Plan" development plan for the Laboratory Department of the Autonomous Region, and assisting in organizing the "Urban and Rural Counterpart Support Clinical Laboratory Technology Training" of the Laboratory Medicine Branch of the Chinese Medical Association. Since then, Tibet has been like a magnet to me, with an irrepressible attraction. Whenever I hear the news that the construction of departments in Tibetan areas has been achieved, the ability of department personnel has been improved, or the equipment has been updated iteratively, I am sincerely happy for them.
▲In October 2011, Cheng Xinqi (first from the right) took a group photo in front of the Medical Technology Building of the People's Hospital of the Autonomous Region as a member of the 14th batch of medical team members of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences
After ten years, we have once again aided Tibet. In July 2021, I joined the seventh batch of "group-style" tibet medical team of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, returned to this land of dreams, and started a new journey with great expectation.
▲ On August 3, 2021, Wu Peixin, secretary of the Party Committee, went to Tibet to comfort the members of the seventh batch of "group-style" tibet-aided medical teams of Peking Union Medical College Hospital
At this time, the Laboratory Department of the Autonomous Region People's Hospital, after 6 years of "group-style" assistance, under the continuous struggle of Qiu Ling, Liu Zhongjuan, Dou Hongtao, Zhao Ying, Guo Ye and Qin Xuzhen, has become the world's highest ISO15189 accredited medical laboratory, and the test level has been greatly improved.
Taking over the seventh baton, I am determined to do more practical things for clinicians, laboratory colleagues and patients in the plateau, and contribute to the realization of the goal of "no major illness out of Tibet" under the "Healthy Tibet" strategy.
▲ In October 2021, the Beijing-Tibet "Synergy", Medical Examination and Integration" and "Laboratory and Clinical Series Lecture Halls" were held
The cultivation of local talents is the key to "hematopoietic" assistance. In the first two months of entering Tibet, I actively organized the Beijing-Tibet "Cooperation" Force, Medical Examination and Integration "Harmony" - Laboratory and Clinical Lecture Series. The lecture hall topics were carefully designed, and the training was carried out closely around common diseases and laboratory examination techniques in Tibet. Intimately design the form of the lecture hall, flexibly apply offline, online and other ways, set up sub-venues in Xigaze, Ali, Shannan and other cities, so as to facilitate local medical staff to watch intensively. Happily, both the content of the lecture and the form of the lecture have been fully affirmed by the laboratory and clinical colleagues in Tibet, and everyone has said that they have gained a lot and benefited a lot.
▲ Vice President Peng Bin (top left) and Director Xu Yingchun of the Department of Clinical Laboratory (top right) delivered online speeches at the Beijing-Tibet "Cooperation" Force, Medical Examination and Integration" and "Lecture Hall"; Lhasa (bottom left) and Ali (lower right) took photos at the venue
As a laboratory physician, I know that laboratory medicine can only work better if it is close to the clinic and close to the patient. During the period of aid to Tibet, I made full use of my time to participate in as many clinical difficult case discussions and rounds as possible.
During a joint round, we met a patient with pulmonary embolism who still had a recurrence of the thrombus during his hospitalization. After several regimen adjustments, oral anticoagulation with rivaroxaban is planned, but anti-Xa activity tests that can be used to monitor rivaroxaban are not available in the region. In order to meet the clinical needs, the laboratory department urgently coordinated the anti-Xa activity measurement kit from the mainland, sorted out and completed all the procedures required for the development of the new project at the first time, and thus launched the first anti-Xa activity testing project in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
At the beginning of the project, another patient with thrombosis was encountered, although the amount of heparin was increasing, the anticoagulant effect was not ideal, and the anti-Xa activity results were also abnormally low. At the recommendation of the laboratory, we added an antithrombin test to the patient, proving that the patient's heparin dosage was large, but the low anti-Xa activity was due to the decrease in antithrombin activity. After the clinician adjusted the treatment plan accordingly, the treatment effect was significantly improved.
▲Tibet News Network reported on April 12, 2022: The first anti-Xa activity testing project in our region was landed in the People's Hospital of the Autonomous Region
On the basis of in-depth clinical, understanding of needs, and full communication, I also observed the impact of polyemia on APTT detection, found a personalized solution for plateau areas, combined with the existing working conditions of the department to carry out new projects such as proGRP and 24-hour urine free cortisol, and a number of clinical urgently needed new projects are also being prepared at the same time.
The second mission to aid Tibet is not over, and I will cherish the remaining precious time to support clinicians in the plateau and benefit more plateau patients. I firmly believe that my fate with Tibet will continue in the future journey of my life.
Photo courtesy of Cheng Xinqi
Editor/Fu Tanjuan Fan Xinchen
Editor-in-Chief/Chen Mingyan
Producer/Wu Peixin