More than forty senior local nurses gathered on July 18th at the Telemedicine Center of the Sierra Leone-China Friendship Hospital in Freetown for a specialized training course. This event was part of an initiative to teach traditional Chinese medicine organized by Chinese doctors.
Training Model and Lectures
The training was conducted using a hybrid model that combined remote video lectures from specialists in Hunan Province with practical demonstration of clinical skills performed by doctors from the 27th Chinese medical team group. The session was organized via video conference and included a four-part program covering theory, simulation, a Q&A session, and clinical rounds.
During the lecture, Dr. Zhou Shenqian traced the historical development of acupuncture, starting from ancient methods using stone needles and the origins of moxibustion, to the theoretical foundations laid out in the work 'Huangdi Neijing'. He then presented Fu-needle therapy, a modern form of acupuncture adapted to the local clinical conditions in Sierra Leone, where chronic neck, shoulder, and joint pain is common, yet specialized acupuncture services remain scarce.
Practical Procedure Demonstrations
Dr. Zhou demonstrated Fu-needle therapy on an 18-year-old local university student who suffered from recurring knee pain and limited mobility for six months. Within two minutes of the procedure, the patient reported a significant reduction in pain syndrome and was able to squat, stand, and bend the joint again.
Concurrently, Tan Yan and Dr. Li Duandandan led clinical workstations on Gua Sha (scraping) and mobile cupping techniques. Tan demonstrated standard upper limb scraping, detailing the choice of instrument, the necessary 45-degree application angle, even pressure, and assessment of skin marks, as well as standard contraindications. Li showed cupping on the back, explaining negative pressure control and movement direction along the bladder meridian.
Significance of the Program for Healthcare
Zainab Bangura, a nurse registered at the Sierra Leone-China Friendship Hospital, noted that this course provides structured practical knowledge that meets daily clinical needs and addresses a clear gap in pain management services in the region. Since arriving in Sierra Leone, the 27th Chinese medical team has utilized the Traditional Chinese Medicine Center and the China-Sierra Leone Nursing Training Center as a dual platform for sustainable capacity building.
