Chinese medical workers heal wounds of Haitian quake survivors

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Jan. 27 (Xinhua) -- Under a baking sun in the Caribbean nation, Chinese medical workers were soaked with sweat after setting up two tents near an open fair in this quake-torn capital.

The canvas Chinese hospital attracted hundreds of people, many women and children, when it "opened for business" at 9 a.m. Wednesday. Fully armed Chinese peacekeepers were also there to maintain order.

The 40 medical workers, among them interns, surgeons and anti-epidemic experts and all veterans of previous UN missions, arrived in Haiti on Monday, bringing with them 20 tons of medical supplies.

The hospital's first patient was a man in his twenties, whose right arm was still bleeding from a gunshot wound. Medical workers carefully dressed his wound and directed him to a formal hospital to remove the bullet.

One of the medical workers hung a national flag before the makeshift hospital, which provides basic medical care for survivors of the earthquake. It was the first time the five-star red flag of China, which has no diplomatic ties with Haiti, flew in the Caribbean nation.

As of noon, the scorching heat became ever more unbearable; however, medical workers busy attending patients had no time to drink water or go to the toilet. Guan Qun, a female doctor, diagnosed as many as 40 people within two hours.

"The earthquake has dealt a heavy toll on the health of women and children," she said, noting that "there is not enough food and clean water. As a result, many of the quake-shocked children show symptoms of diarrhea, cough and fever."

Anti-epidemic expert Song Hongbin said the medical workers had also been monitoring infection and would immediately warn the World Health Organization and the Haitian government if they sensed an infection risk.

Mohammed, an Iranian medical worker who visited the hospital, spoke highly of Chinese doctors' medical skills as well as their tenderness and patience.

"Those Chinese colleagues, who participated in a massive rescue mission in quake-hit China's southwestern Wenchuan, know more about how to heal the Haitian quake victims," he said.