Chinese health officers visit the Santa Casa da Misericordia de Santos
Henrique S. Ivamoto, MD
A delegation of twelve officers from China’s Health Ministry visited our hospital, the Santa Casa da Misericordia of the city of Santos, on Saturday, July 14, 2007. The mission was led by Li Ning, MD, MPH, Deputy Director General of the Bureau of Health Care, a physician specialized on Family Health on the People’s Republic of China.
Mr. Manoel Lourenço das Neves, president of our institution, explained the visitors about the organization of the hospital, its facilities, the medical, nursing, administrative and volunteer staffs. Answering to the visitors' questions, he told about the Government’s daily US$1.80 fee per inpatient, covering nursing care and five meals, and the US$3.60 daily medical fee. Drs. João Garcia (clinical director), Celso Schmalfuss Nogueira (president of the Study Center) and Henrique S. Ivamoto (chief of the Neurosurgery Service and editor of the Acta Medica Misericordiæ) explained about medical and historical aspects.
On their part, our visitors explained about the private and public health care systems in People’s Republic of China and that, since the economic reform, all patients assisted by the public system pay 8% for the services rendered. The charge of a small fee for public services avoids the demands, on the part of patients, for unnecessary high cost services, such as computed tomography and MRI for simple migraine or tensional headaches, as occur in Brazil.
Scaterred throughout the country, the Santas Casas da Misericordia are the main responsible for the hospital care in Brazil. The first was founded in Lisbon in 1498, based on a similar institution from Florence, Italy. The Italian unit was organized according to the descriptions of the original institutions observed in China by travellers like Marco Polo and others, who brought the idea to Europe. The Santa Casa da Misericordia of Macau was founded by the Portuguese in the 16th Century.
Visiting the Santa Casa da Misericordia of the City of Santos, the oldest Brazilian hospital, founded in 1543, the Chinese officers saw a philanthropic institution whose basic organization, actually, had been conceived in China many centuries earlier.
In the next two days, the mission will visit other hospitals in the cities of Sao Paulo and Brasilia and return to China.
Henrique Seiji Ivamoto, MD, editor
Acta Medica Misericordiæ
Centro de Estudos da Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Santos
11075-900 Santos, SP
BRAZIL
hivamoto@yahoo.com.br, hivamoto@hotmail.com, www.actamedica.org.br
Some members of the Chinese delegation:
Li Ning, MD, MPH
(Leader of the Chinese mission)
Deputy Director General
Bureau of Health Care
Ministry of Health
People’s Republic of China
Xue Puying, Program Officer
Division of International Organizations
Department of International Cooperation
Ministry of Health
People’s Republic of China
xuepy@moh.gov.cn
Bureay of Health Care
Ministry of Health
People’s Republic of China
Telephone 0086-010-68792424
Pictures of the visit taken by Dr. Celso Schmalfuss Nogueira, president of the Study Center:
A Revista das Santas Casas