China on the Move: Tibetan doctor in multi-ethnic community

Watch Video

Play Video

Northwest China is home to various ethnic groups. In some places, they live together in one village. Our reporter Wang Mangmang meets one Tibetan doctor in Qinghai who's spent the past four decades treating patients from different ethnicities, with equal devotion, care, and respect.

Every morning, Lijia Cairang waits for patients in his clinic. The sixty eight year old doctor specializes in Tibetan therapy, which he combines with western medicine. He draws on different treatments because his patients are diverse.

Dr. Lijia Cairang, Guide County of Qinghai, said, "Each ethnic group has its own culture and habits, so I try to be careful about that. They are equal to me as patients, no matter which group they belong to. I believe we should care for every person when he's in trouble and help him get over it. And we share happiness, too, as when people send best wishes to one another when any ethnic group celebrates important festivals."

Wen Guoqiang, a Hui patient, said, "He's very considerate of our ethnic customs. For example, we Hui have a month of fasting, when we can't eat during the day. So he prescribes medicine in a way that lets us it over night. This is respectful."

The doctor provides more than just medical care. He treats needy patients for free.

In this notebook, primarily written in Tibetan, we see a list of records, patients’visiting time, this one starts from 2007. It has patients’age and their names. And the last column with the red finger prints is the total fees that are exempted, ranging from half a yuan to four hundred and eighty. Over the past four decades, the doctor has exempted half a million yuan of medical costs from his patients.

In the afternoon, LiJia Cairang makes house calls in surrounding villages.

He's an old friend to this family. The patient suffers from arthritis and can barely walk. The doctor visits him every other week and has given him the means to get around.