This is an affiliated hospital of a major motor company in Shiyan, a small industrial city in central China. It has 1,400 open beds, more than 200 senior professionals, more than 160 personnel who hold PhDs or Master’s degrees, more than 60 associate professors, and more than 30 Master’s advisors788. It also serves as the clinical school of Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, and the teaching hospital of several other medical colleges.
In 1979, the hospital carried out the first kidney transplantation and the patient survived 4 years and 7 months, creating a precedent for industrial hospitals to carry out organ transplants. 789 The hospital’s organ transplant works has had inputs of training and support from Tongji Medical College, which was one of the earliest and largest organ transplant research center and clinics in China.
Business Card of Shiyan
The hospital is the only prefecture-level city hospital in Hubei Province accredited by the Ministry of Health to perform organ transplantation, and the only accredited organ transplant center in the region of 26 million people. In less than ten years, the explosive growth in this hospital’s transplantation activities “caused the local economy to prosper,” “elevated the city’s reputation,” and gradually replaced the Dongfeng vehicle as the new “business card of Shiyan.”790
In August 2000, Dongfeng General Hospital conducted 10 kidney transplants, one thyroid transplant, and 3 corneal transplants within the same day. It is known as the only hospital in northwestern Hubei capable of carrying out multiple types of organ transplants simultaneously.791 In addition to the regular kidney transplants,792 the hospital also performs liver, corneal, in situ parathyroid, bone marrow, and many other types of organ and tissue transplantation. In 2009, the hospital established an Organ Transplantation Research Center.
All Hands on Deck
Yuan Fangjun, Deputy Director of the hospital, said in 2010 that kidney transplant had become a routine surgery and almost all their surgeons can independently complete a kidney transplant.793 The hospital has over 10 surgical departments and more than 100 surgeons, he said.
How many transplants is the hospital performing to necessitate training almost all of its surgeons in the procedure?
Yuan’s statement has been corroborated by below example of the Breast Transplant Department.
Breast Transplant Department
The hospital has a breast transplant department with more than 40 beds, 3 chief physicians, 2 associate chief physicians, 4 attending physicians, and 3 residents. 794 These doctors’ web pages are no longer accessible.
According to an article dated December 29, 2010 on the hospital’s website, “Since 1978, Dongfeng General Hospital has completed a variety of more than 400 cases of organ transplants.”795 However, in a report by Shiyan Evening News on November 27, 2010, Dr. Wei Jian, the hospital’s Organ Transplant Ward Director, said that he alone had completed almost 400 cases of organ transplants. 796 Dr. Wei started to work in this hospital after graduating from medical college.
Another report by Shiyuan Evening News said by 2016 the hospital had completed 500 cases of organ transplants797, which means from 2011 to 2015 the total number of organ transplant conducted is less than 100. This is likely another instance of lowballing the numbers, because the same report said the hospital completed a total of 75 transplants during 2014 and 2015.