Heart Sapling Germinate | A Burmese scholar successfully rescue heart attack patients on her first day of returning home after graduation

On March 20th, Yangon time, Toe Wai Wai Naing, a young Burmese cardiologist who completed a one-year cardiovascular specialist training in Xiamen, China, faced a challenge at Yangon General Hospital on her first day back to work. A nearly sixty year old patient with acute myocardial infarction was urgently referred to the hospital. Using the techniques learned at Xiamen Cardiovascular Hospital Xiamen University (referred to as "XMCH"), Toe successfully performed percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedure, opening the occluded blood vessel and saving the patient's life.

In March 2024, upon recommendation by the Ministry of Investment and Foreign Economic Relations of Myanmar, Toe was selected as a visiting scholar in the Heart Sapling Visiting Scholar Program at XMCH (referred to as the "Heart Sapling Program").

The Heart Sapling Program was initiated by XMCH to provide specialized training for young cardiovasular specialists worldwide, aiming to cultivate outstanding cardiovascular specialists and help improve the global level of cardiovascular diagnosis and treatment.

In April 2023, Heart Sapling Program was officially released to the public during the high-level thematic promotion event of the Global Development Initiative at the United Nations headquarters, and was included in the Global Development Project Pool of China International Development Cooperation Agency in April 2024.

At XMCH, Toe embarked on a systematic training and learning journey in coronary specialty. Director Cheng Ye, her mentor, tailored a phased training program for her, covering various forms such as theoretical learning, surgical demonstrations, case discussions, and teaching rounds. With the high-quality medical resources and abundant cases of XMCH, Toe has accumulated experience in the treatment of difficult and critical illnesses over the past year, and its surgical skills have also significantly improved.

Dr. Toe Wai Wai Naing (first from the right) is studying coronary intervention procedure at XMCH

"My colleagues used to choose Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and other places for training when they went out in the past. I was the first doctor from the hospital to come to China for training. "She said that Myanmar's medical resources are limited, and her study in Xiamen, China allowed her to be exposed to innovative technologies such as intravascular imaging, shock wave therapy, rotational atherectomy, and even international leading technologies such as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and percutaneous ventricular assist device, laying a good foundation for her to independently carry out vascular intervention therapy.

In September 2024, Dialogue on Global Development Initiative announced that in the next three years, XMCH will recruit 50 scholars from countries of the Group of Friends of the Global Development Initiative to help build a community of human health and well-being. At present, the Heart Sapling Program has received 22 scholars from 12countries for training in Xiamen.

Scholars of the Heart Sapling Program participated in the Global Development Initiative Dialogue

Under the framework of global development initiatives, more and more young physicians like Toe are coming to Xiamen to learn about China's innovative medical technology, use domestically produced innovative medical devices, and experience the rapid development of China's healthcare industry. As of now, 12 trainees from 7 countries have graduated and returned to their countries, becoming the backbone of local medical and health care, promoting the improvement of local medical standards. The Heart Sapling Program not only cultivates and delivers international cardiovascular specialists, but also builds a bridge for medical institutions to exchange ideas among countries, deepens international medical and health cooperation, and contributes to the global health cause with the XMCH initiative.