Taichung hospital awarded MOFA’s Friend of Foreign Service Medal

Taichung City-based China Medical University Hospital in central Taiwan was awarded the Friend of Foreign Service Medal by Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu Aug. 29 for advancing the nation’s medical diplomacy.

From 2013 to 2017, nine CMUH teams comprising a total of 158 health care professionals offered free services in rural regions of Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, Wu said at the conferment ceremony in Taipei City. More than 22,000 people benefited from these missions, he added.

The hospital also worked with International Cooperation and Development Fund (TaiwanICDF)—the country’s foremost foreign aid organization—to dispatch 11 medical teams to seven diplomatic allies in the Asia-Pacific and Latin America between 2007 and 2011, Wu said.

According to the minister, among the beneficiaries of CMUH’s medical largesse is Vietnamese teenager Nguyen Thi Loan, who received treatment for congenital lymphedema in her left leg at the hospital from 2012 to 2017. Her road to recovery was highlighted in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs-produced short film “A Perfect Pair.”

Wu also cited CMUH’s treatment since 2010 of 24 foreign patients from eight countries with rare diseases that caused deformities. These success stories spotlight the nation’s medical prowess and humanitarian concern for the well-being of all people, he said, adding that the hospital’s international contributions underscore the need for Taiwan to participate in activities and meetings of global health organizations.

Presenting the medal to CMUH Superintendent Cho Der-yang on behalf of the institution, Wu said that going forward the government will continue to support the hospital’s efforts in furthering Taiwan’s medical diplomacy. Such public-private partnerships can play an important role in enhancing the country’s soft power and strengthening international awareness of its health care expertise, he added. (KWS-E)