China Part 2 – Beijing

Training 120 Chinese Orthopedic Surgeons who do not speak English posed more than a few challenges.  Many of my lectures rely on humor and subtitles.  Explaining complex ankle deformities become almost impossible.  However, amazingly, through body language and intonations and I think their desire to understand, the day ended with a successful grasp of techniques of ankle replacement and arthritis, tendon reconstruction, and bunion surgery.

120 Orthopedic Surgeons from every province in China

Beijing itself has over 20 million people.  Over 150 cities in China are larger than Columbus Ohio.  Although the surgeons and hospitals are equivalent to ours, there are very few Orthopedic Surgeons who specialize in Foot and Ankle. The surgeons here recognize this need and I’m sure this is why the meeting this weekend was so well attended and so enthusiastic.

Training new techniques on artificial foot bones

Meeting and conversing with a wide variety of Chinese surgeons was rewarding.  The Chinese are not allowed more than one child per family.  Therefore, everyone is an only child.  No one has brothers and sisters.  Unless someone is ill or handicapped, almost all Chinese people work.  So all these only children were raised not by their mothers but by grandparents or relatives. Families are strong.  People do not eat alone.  Meals, even in business meetings, are always eaten family style.  Food is placed in the center of the table and people will reach and double dip one serving at a time. People rarely move from the province of their families and if they do, it’s only for educational opportunities.

There are not enough university positions for the 1 billion people who would like to enter.  Therefore, education is highly competitive.  Those who do not score well on their entrance exam will never receive further education.  Conversely, those who succeed into medicine are truly the best and brightest that China has to offer.

With a few hours of free time and a quick visit to the Great Wall of China, it was easy to see how this cultural discipline could create a mind boggling 2000 mile wall through precipitous mountain ridges.

The meandering Great Wall of China cutting through the mountainside