By Denis Ejulu
Viola Simon Benjamin,24, a student at Starford International University College in South Sudan had since 2020, been unable to concentrate in class due to intense lower back pain which also rendered her incapable of doing home chores.
The second-year student of business entrepreneurship, from the Hai-Tarawa suburb of Juba, underwent surgery on Wednesday at the University of Juba clinic, with the help of the 12th batch of the China medical team.
“Whenever I sat on the chair, I would support my lower back with a pillow. When I sit for long I felt pain and at times I would get out of class because I could not manage to sit for long,” Benjamin told the Juba Echo in Juba.
The doctors led by Wang Chuan Xi, the Acting team leader of the 12th batch of the Chinese medical team on Sept.28, carried out checks on Benjamin whom they diagnosed with Lipoma, a round or oval-shaped lump of tissue that grows just beneath the skin.
Lipomas can appear anywhere on the body, but they are most common on the back, trunk (torso), arms, shoulders, and neck.
Benjamin said after undergoing the first minor surgery operation at the University of Juba clinic; that her family had initially failed to meet the costs demanded by local doctors for the surgical operation.
She admitted that she would not have met the Chinese doctors without the help of her friend who works at Juba Teaching Hospital.
“I appreciate the Chinese doctors because it is a privilege for me to have gotten this operation free of charge, before I was operated on, I visited a South Sudanese doctor who told me that the operation would cost hundreds of dollars,” Benjamin said.
Julia Sebit, the mother of Benjamin appreciated the Chinese medical team and the University of Juba for relieving the burden of treating her daughter, adding that the costs would have been high at a private clinic.
“I am happy because if it was done at another clinic, it could have been a lot of money that we cannot afford, may God bless the Chinese doctor so that they help us in our country,” Sebit said.
Sebit called for close cooperation between South Sudanese and Chinese doctors, adding that it benefits mutual understanding and people-to-people exchanges.
“We need to treat foreigners very well and we have to cooperate with them sufficiently because they are not coming with bad intentions, they are training us. The doctors coming from outside do not charge a lot of money, they serve humanity, imagine doctors offer services for free but our doctors are charging high costs,” she added.
Chinese doctors are seen providing free clinical services to people at the University of Juba.
Dr. Suzan Peter Ladu, director of the University of Juba clinic, said that they are benefiting from the memorandum of understanding signed between the University of Juba and Juba Teaching Hospital in November 2023.
Under the deal, Chinese medical teams are charged with providing medical equipment and reagents worth more than 40,000 U.S. dollars to the university’s clinic and also train doctors and nurses.
“Every Monday and Wednesday they are offering two different specialists, they sit here and see patients. This is the first time they are doing it because previously they used to donate medical equipment and medicine,” Ladu said.
She noted that the university clinic has since 1977, been serving neighboring communities besides students and staff of the university.
“I think this surgery is a great transformation for us because since we signed the MoU, nothing like this has happened, today is the first time they have carried out the minor surgical operation, we need more but currently we lack a surgical ward,” Ladu disclosed.
Wang Chuan Xi, the Acting team leader of the 12th batch of Chinese medical team, said that the first case of surgery performed by Chinese specialist doctors is an innovative approach that demonstrates the effectiveness of the partnership between Juba teaching hospital and the University of Juba.
“Once the minor operation can be performed at the clinic of the University of Juba, it benefits the patients nearby, because the patients don’t have to go very far to seek minor operation treatment,” Wang said.
Wang said that the China medical team will continue to serve more patients by leveraging the clinic surgeries for patients at the University of Juba.
