Chinese hospital ship to visit Tonga [1]
Friday, August 8, 2014 - 16:00. Updated on Friday, August 8, 2014 - 18:15.
‘Peace Ark’, a Naval Hospital Ship from China, will visit Nuku’alofa on August 13-20 to provide medical services.
Mr Wang Lushan, the Counsellor at the Chinese Embassy, said this is the first time a Chinese hospital ship is visiting Tonga. The visit is part of its Harmony Mission 2014 to four Pacific Islands with Tonga its first stop before Fiji, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea.
The ship will bring 385 crew-members including 132 medical personnel to provide medical services with physical examinations, diagnosis and treatment.
Mr Wang said the medical services will be open to the public on board the ship. A team will also be dispatched to carry out the same service at Vaiola Hospita and health centers throughout Tongatapu.
The Chinese team will work together with the Ministry of Health and His Majesty’s Armed Forces to visit schools and communities and provide health education.
Commissioned in October 2008 by the People’s Liberation Army Navy, the ship has a full displacement of 14,300 tons. It has an ambulance helicopter and is equipped with 300 beds, eight operating rooms and more than 200 types of medical devices including CT, ultrasonic, biochemistry analyzer and monitors.