The head of the Taiwan International Cooperation Mobile Medical Team to Banjul has pledged to explore possibilities of engaging major hospitals in his Asian-Pacific island state to assist Gambian hospitals with biomedical equipment and other useful supplies.

Dr Jefferey Chan, who headed an 11-member delegation to provide humanitarian medical services at Sulayman Junkung Hospital in Bwiam and AFPRC Hospital in Farafenni, made this pledge in an exclusive interview with the Daily Observer, during a farewell dinner hosted by Dr Patrick Chang, Taiwanese ambassador to The Gambia.

Dr Chan said their two-week working visit to the country availed them the opportunity to not only treat patients but have a true picture of the state of some major hospitals in the country.

He lauded the magnificent infrastructure at the two hospitals visited but bemoaned the lack of some specialised biomedical equipment, which, according to him, limited some specialised operations. However, Dr Chan reported that his team was able to conduct some surgical operations such as a snake bite that saw the removal of necrosis from a swollen leg. He added that one of the cases involved burns.

He told the Daily Observer that most of the 1,200 patients treated by the team were found to be ill with malaria, hypertension and diabetes. He said the hypertension was prevalent among women, while diabetes was high among men. He said the malaria cases were found to be high among children.

He disclosed that the team had the opportunity to also learn, as well as share with their Gambian counterparts and nurses invaluable experiences in the field of medicine. He thanked Gambian authorities and officials of the Taiwan Embassy for facilitating their work.