Many of the Japanese era buildings built for the Manchurian government have been turned into hospitals by the communists, smartly distancing there own government from the previous tenants. These buildings stand out against the more recent constructions and look a class apart. Many apartment blocks built only 5 years ago are already crumbling and look more like they were built 50 years ago. I didn’t believe it at first when I was told that my apartment was only 5 years old; ‘ it can’t be ‘ I said to myself. If a building looks about 20 years old it’s actually 2 or three years old, if it looks 10 years old it’s probably more like 30.

Anyway, there are only a few of these impressive buildings left in Changchun, which is unfortunate, as they add unique character to a city that would otherwise be architecturally bereft. Indeed, I’m willing to bet that not many of the newly constructed high-rise bocks will still be standing in 70 years time.

I’m writing this because, I went into one of these old buildings to visit a friend who is in one of the hospitals. Inside the building once you walk through the large doorway it could be any other building in Changchun. Dark long corridoors, walls painted brown up to waist height, then light blue up to the ceiling. My first impression was somthing like: ‘I hope I never get really ill here’ ‘I don’t want to ever come here as a patient’ and ‘if i’m ill, i’m on the first plane out of here!’
I’ve been told the medical facilities are good and up to western standards, But I think I’ll take their word for it.
I saw cracked flooring, dirty walls and lumps of paint falling off the ceiling – not particuarly hygenic.

There’s no such thing as visiting hours either. People come and go as they like and there are no restrictions on the number of visitors, it’s considered part of the responsibility of the family to look after the relative

Of course being China, many of the men were smoking taking no notice of the signs plastered on every wall. In many ways, there are far more freedoms in China than in the UK – as here most of the laws are not enforced, and even if they were i doubt anyone would take much notice.
Also there seemed to be no problem using a mobile phone, even one of the nurses was chatting away, I noticed most of the staff had phones in their top pockets. I walked upstairs to the thrid floor past lots of rooms crammed with beds, 6,8 even 10 to a room. And past beds out in the corridoor itself, I started to think of something i’d seen on TV, this wasn’t quite a field hospital but it wasn’t far off.
Unlike hospitals back home I was free to roam pretty much where ever i wanted, on some of the walls there were posters of people’s internal organs – too graphic by far to show and shocked me at first. Also there were lots of government looking health related posters and some wonderfully elaborate english translations for the names of the departments. The ‘anus dept’ sign made me laugh.

Up on the top floor there was a large steel door. Beyond this I could not venture, it’s where the operations are conducted and from looking through the glass window, looks just like a hospital back home. Clean floors, that smell or disinfectant and for the first time I saw something that looked modern; some sort of machine. Outside this door were waiting about ten people, and when the door opened they jumped up and out came a stretcher. The people – relatives and friends – took the stretcher and walked towards the lift, no porter or hospital staff here – self service. Also you get to see the goods. Surgeons would come out with a plastic see-through bag full of whatever body part that had been removed from the patient, as an indication that the work had actually been done.

In China, despite being a so called ‘socialist’ country, nothing in the the health system is free. Everything costs.  As far as I know the government provides little of no free medical care, though most people are covered by their employer’s medical insurance. However this does not cover the cost of everything and those without good paying jobs i.e. those in the countryside, can’t afford it. Also you will probably have to pay up front, then claim afterwards.