As well as assuring a high standard of health care to patients, the Mennonite Christian Hospital in Hualien provides a pleasant and inspiring work environment for medical and administrative staff. Although it is privately run, the hospital rivals many of the public hospitals in Taiwan in terms of its medical treatment, research and teaching. Because of its religious background, the hospital provides spiritual as well as physical counseling for patients.
The history of the hospital in Taiwan started in 1948 when the Mennonite Central Committee was invited by the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan to start mobile clinics to serve aborigines in mountainous areas of the island. Prior to the Communist take-over, the committee had been active on the mainland.
When the mobile clinics started operations, they provided service for the poor in the form of milk stands where people could obtain milk powder, butter and other food. Since many of the doctors could not speak Mandarin Chinese, interpreters had to be on hand at all times to ensure proper treatment. Gradually, the confidence of the people built up.
In 1949, the Mennonite Central Committee rented a house from an aluminum factory to give free medical treatment to aborigines. Five years later, the Joint Commission on Rural Reconstruction made a significant contribution to building a 35-bed facility at the present location of the hospital. At the end of 1978, with contributions from both Taiwan and overseas, the original wing of the hospital was rebuilt, and today, it is equipped with 168 beds and staffed by 330 doctors and nurses. From humble beginnings, the hospital has grown into a reputable and prestigious institution.
Much of this progress has been due to the efforts of the hospital's medical director, Dr. Roland P. Brown, a skilled American surgeon who attracts many students and doctors to the hospital. He is also in charge of the mobile clinics which have been operated for the past 30 years under his philosophy of inculcating the ideals of family planning, hygiene and disease prevention as well as treating illnesses.
The unsanitary conditions in the Hualien area when the clinics were first opened 30 years ago meant that aborigine people suffered from poor health, and contagious diseases and malnutrition were prevalent. The introduction of the mobile clinics, however, led to immediate improvements.
Today, the Mennonite Christian Hospital is the only one in the Hualien area with its own public health department, which cooperates fully with the community public health service. The hospital was established as a relief agency for aborigines in the Hualien area. When the mobile clinics were first organized by the hospital, there were no roads to the most remote communities, and doctors had to walk at least part of the way. Most of these doctors were general practitioners, so they could treat a wide spectrum of diseases quickly and effectively. Usually staffed with a doctor, two nurses and sometimes a dentist, the mobile clinics do their rounds of rural communities at set times which are known in advance. The villagers have therefore learned how to seek help when they need it. In addition to the mobile clinics, a community clinic has been established at Yuli in Hualien County.
The Mennonite hospital has its own social work department which provides loans for people who cannot pay their bills. Psychological counseling and occupational therapy are also important functions of the hospital.
As more than 65 percent of the staff at the hospital are Christians, patients are assured of kindness, respect and devotion. Most staff members are prepared to work hard and respect each other as well as their patients. In this environment, it is no wonder that hospital workers are happy and have few complaints.
As well as its good working conditions, the hospital has the most modern facilities, and foreign doctors and medical students who go there through exchanges arranged by the Mennonite Central Committee bring in the latest techniques. The hospital's own staff also go abroad for research and studies, and this, together with the hospital's excellent library, provides a good teaching environment.
To promote accuracy and efficiency, the hospital has instituted a double-checking system for patients, which reduces the chance of wrong diagnosis and mistreatment. Some procedures which would take six hours at hospitals in Taipei are done in only an hour and 15 minutes at the Mennonite facility.
With their devotion to patients' all-round welfare, and their ability to meet spiritual as well as physical needs through their belief in God, the hospital's staff have helped to make the Mennonite Hospital one of the best private ones not only in the Hualien area, but also in the whole of Taiwan.
[Picture Caption]
1. The wall of the children's ward is covered with lively animals, giving the children a pleasant environment while chasing away their fears of hospitals. 2. This four story hospital is a Christian organization. 3. The daily morning worship service is open to both hospital employees and patients. 4. Mennonite Christian Hospital has daily showings of health care movies for patients and their families. 5. Nurses often discuss their work experiences, this has helped increase the quality of their service. 6. The environment at Mennonite Christian Hospital is pleasant and calm, pictured here is a quiet hospital hallway.
1. This nurse carefully looks after a new born child. 2. The yard of Mennonite Christian Hospital. 3. An occupational therapist teaches a patient handicrafts. 4. Mennonite Christian Hospital on-the-job training program keeps employees abreast of new medical developments, pictured here are nurses in class. 5. Bible sayings are hung in the halls of the hospital, giving it a strong religious atmosphere. 6. Patient's relatives must don masks and gowns before entering Isolation Rooms.
1. Nurses give a stroke patient physiotherapy. 2. Hsu Wen-fu is an example of the success of the hospitals physiotherapy program. He can be seen at the door of the hospital every morning selling flowers. Thus encouraging current patients to stand on their own feet. 3. Flowers & plants can be found everywhere in Mennonite Christian Hospital, thus giving it a look of vitality. 4. Mennonite Christian Hospital's director Kao Ming-jen has gone abroad to study and an American, Dr Lucas has taken his place. Dr Lucas is the best plastic surgeon in Eastern Taiwan. 5. Leading pediatrician, Yang Yi-ming is a leukemia specialist. 6. Radiologist Wang Jun-chuan volunteers his services to the hospital. He is pictured here with his wife. 7. Foreign doctors and nurses often come to visit Mennonite Christian Hospital. 8. Wu Wen-yang taking an Echocardiogram of a patient's heart. 9. Le Chun-jen is one of the leading authorities on children's epilepsy.
2. This four story hospital is a Christian organization.
3. The daily morning worship service is open to both hospital employees and patients.
4. Mennonite Christian Hospital has daily showings of health care movies for patients and their families.
5. Nurses often discuss their work experiences, this has helped increase the quality of their service.
6. The environment at Mennonite Christian Hospital is pleasant and calm, pictured here is a quiet hospital hallway.
1. This nurse carefully looks after a new born child.
3. An occupational therapist teaches a patient handicrafts.
2. The yard of Mennonite Christian Hospital.
4. Mennonite Christian Hospital on-the-job training program keeps employees abreast of new medical developments, pictured here are nurses in class.
5. Bible sayings are hung in the halls of the hospital, giving it a strong religious atmosphere.
6. Patient's relatives must don masks and gowns before entering Isolation Rooms.
1. Nurses give a stroke patient physiotherapy.
2. Hsu Wen-fu is an example of the success of the hospitals physiotherapy program. He can be seen at the door of the hospital every morning selling flowers. Thus encouraging current patients to stand on their own feet.
3. Flowers & plants can be found everywhere in Mennonite Christian Hospital, thus giving it a look of vitality.
4. Mennonite Christian Hospital's director Kao Ming-jen has gone abroad to study and an American, Dr Lucas has taken his place. Dr Lucas is the best plastic surgeon in Eastern Taiwan.
5. Leading pediatrician, Yang Yi-ming is a leukemia specialist.
6. Radiologist Wang Jun-chuan volunteers his services to the hospital. He is pictured here with his wife.
7. Foreign doctors and nurses often come to visit Mennonite Christian Hospital.
8. Wu Wen-yang taking an Echocardiogram of a patient's heart.
9. Le Chun-jen is one of the leading authorities on children's epilepsy.
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