Doctor's love is best medicine

Efforts paid off

Zhong has bought better medical equipment for the local health center, including ultrasound equipment. About 40 percent of the women in the village have benefited from her efforts.

She has helped to set up digital health records for all villagers in Longhe. "If they go to a different hospital outside the village, their records can be readily available for better diagnosis and treatment," she says.

For her efforts she has won numerous awards, including the China Youth May Fourth Medal in 2012, and the Chinese Physician Award, the highest award in the country's physician industry, in 2018.

At the moment Zhong drops by a dozen households a day on her motorcycle. The roads have greatly improved, she says, meaning that a typical commute lasts little more than 10 minutes.

The village clinic, which once consisted of two small, shabby rooms, has been transformed. It is now housed in a three-story building in which patients' ailments are diagnosed on the first floor, traditional Chinese medicine treatment is dispensed on the second, and health lectures are held on the third.

More people have joined Zhong's cause, too.

Shuai Weiwei from Longchang town was inspired to join the clinic in 2018 after reading about her.

"Zhong's commitment to treating rural villagers is admirable," Shuai says.

"Some villagers always thank her in different ways, such as leaving local specialties at the clinic's door."

Zhong says: "I'm glad that I'm not only a doctor in the village now, but also a mediator of family conflicts and a bridge between local government and villagers. It feels great to be of some help and be trusted by them."

Speaking of her future, Zhong says she will continue to improve her expertise to meet the villagers' increasing demands for better health.

She is also keen to give full play to the advantages of traditional Chinese medicine in preventing or nipping diseases in the bud, so villagers can enjoy a higher quality of life.

In the village clinic, the black shoes from the old patient have claimed a special spot of their own.

"It's a constant reminder to me of remaining true to my original aspirations and continuing to stay on the right path," she says.