NPO HEART SAVING PROJECT

A Visit After Seven Years

NPO Heart Saving Project began its regional health checkup activities in Mongolia in 2003. Since then, the project has visited 1 to 3 locations every year, completing visits to all provinces by 2015. This is our third visit to Bayan-Ulgii Province, having previously visited in 2013 and 2018. Bayan-Ulgii is located at the western edge of Mongolia, bordering China and Russia, with Kazakhstan across the Altai Mountains. It is approximately 1,600 km from the capital Ulaanbaatar, which takes about 18 hours by car. However, like the last visit, we took a domestic flight (1.5 hours) to reach Bayan-Ulgii.

Given that flights to Bayan-Ölgii only operate twice a week, we arrived on Wednesday and returned to Ulaanbaatar on Saturday. This allowed us to have 2.5 days of activity on-site. During this time, we were able to conduct thorough medical interviews and screenings, provide guidance to Dr. Befbat who joined us, and hold a detailed conference with the local hospital staff. The visit was highly productive and enriching.

Participants

From Japan: 4 doctors and 1 nurse (Nokiyuki Haneda, Toshin Yauchi, Tamomo Ono, Yuka Tabe, Nurse Sachiko Koeda).

From Mongolia: Dr. Befbat from the National Center for Maternal and Child Health, 4 members from the local NGO (Oyunnaa, Ulka, Gamba, Khariuna), 1 secretary from the Bayan-Ulgii Provincial Council, and 2 drivers, totaling 13 participants.

Bayan-Ulgii’s population consists primarily of Kazakh people, and they speak a unique local dialect. The region is predominantly Muslim. For this visit, the doctors at the Provincial Central Hospital helped with interpreting from Mongolian into the local language.Outcomes of the Visit

Outcomes of the Visit

Total number of screenings over three days: 286 (Day 1: 95, Day 2: 107, Day 3: 84).

Among them, 14 were referred to the Maternal and Child Health Center, and 72 received follow-up care at the local hospital.

Details of the Activity

On the morning following our arrival in Mongolia, we left the hotel at 5 a.m. and headed for the domestic airport. After a 1.5-hour flight, we arrived in Bayan-Ulgii and went straight to the Provincial Central Hospital. Upon arrival at 10 a.m., we greeted the hospital director, had lunch, and began the checkups in the afternoon.

 

We used two echocardiography machines brought from Japan, along with one adult echocardiography machine provided by the local hospital. Three Japanese doctors formed three separate teams to conduct the screenings. Dr. Befbat, along with Dr. Haneda, conducted medical interviews, and when abnormal findings were detected on the echocardiograms, they participated in the diagnostic process. Meanwhile, the local NGO set up a reception area in the hallway to create patient interview forms.

On the first day, 95 patients were screened, and there was a request for examinations in the NICU, where 3 patients were seen.

On the second day, 107 people were screened in the morning and afternoon, and from 4:30 p.m., we held a conference for about an hour to discuss the first and second day’s cases. Afterward, we visited the border with Russia and had dinner with the border guards.

On the third day, the examinations were conducted from 9:00 to 14:00, and 84 people were examined.

After  that we had lunch with the head of the cardiology department at the Provincial Central Hospital, followed by the final conference after lunch. In the evening, we dined with the hospital’s vice director and staff. The Kazakh people’s hospitality was very warm, and the overall meal times seemed to be longer than usual.

The next morning, we had breakfast at the hotel, then headed for the airport. We left Bayan-Ölgii at 9:20 a.m. and returned to Ulaanbaatar at 12:20 p.m.

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We would like to take this opportunity to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the participants and those who supported us. Thank you very much.