China's economic boom has benefited many in the country,
including those living in the country side. It means having more
food that is heavier in oil, salt and meat, and a less labor
intensive workload. But this, combined with an insufficient health
care system in the rural areas, has led to a sharp rise in heart
disease and cardiac related deaths in recent decades.
This weekend, Dr. Robert Detrano and a team of volunteers will be
going to the city of Kunming in
Yunnan Province, one of the poorest areas in
China, to provide free cardiac care. He will also be training
Chinese doctors on preventative cardiac care in two hospitals in
Kunming.
Dr. Detrano is the founder of the China California Hearth Watch,
a not-for-profit organization which aims to research and reduce the
extent of heart disease in the Chinese countryside. He has been
practicing medicine for over two decades and is currently a
Professor of Medicine at the University of California at
Irvine.
(CRI October 11, 2007)
