Beijing Friendship Hospital, China
Declan Costello, Consultant ENT Surgeon
As we will all remember, April 2020 was a very difficult time to organise meetings with the global pandemic taking hold. It was deeply ironic that the ENT Masterclass meeting was due to have been held that month in Wuhan, the very epicentre of the global crisis. So it was wonderful that the 7th ENT Masterclass® China could finally go ahead – this time starting in Beijing and then travelling (by the astonishing bullet train) to Wuhan. 
The Friendship Hospital in Beijing was the venue for the first leg of the trip. The talks were given by a combination of local Chinese faculty and international – mostly European – speakers. The talks were also broadcast online, with an audience of 14,000 people at one point. Simultaneous translation was provided by AI; this was mostly very helpful but it did throw up one or two errors. A particular highlight was Professor Quraishi printed as 'Professor Karachi' and at other times ‘Professor Aquarius’!
The lectures ranged from ‘How I do it’ topics through to new developments and overview discussions. In parallel with the ENT surgery sessions, there was an ENT Nursing Masterclass® track. The academic day finished with the visiting lecturers judging registrar research presentations – the standard was truly outstanding, and the winner has gained a trip to the next London Masterclass® with travel expenses paid. The one-day meeting in Wuhan was hosted in the New World Hotel, which was very comfortable and full day of academic activity delivered by the local and visiting faculty.
The Chinese hosts were immensely hospitable throughout the event – in particular, Prof Yuhe Liu, Prof Shusheng Gong, Prof Xianghui Xie and Prof Shutian Zhang, who were extremely kind and gracious.
Across the visit, there were opportunities for some sightseeing, with visits to the Great Wall of China, a cutting-edge robotics lab, Buddhist temples and historic buildings. Some faculty members spent a few days trekking around the mountains near Wuhan. China is a country deeply steeped in tradition and culture, and we were very struck by how proud the people are of their heritage. 
Working with doctors from other countries always gives fascinating insights into clinical and working practices elsewhere in the world. Did you know, for example, that in China (and also in Germany) it is usual for a FESS patient to stay in hospital for up to five days? And the working ethos is very different in China – we learned that when a hospital doctor takes holiday, they have to ‘catch up’ by doing extra clinics to see the patients they would have seen while they were away. We also heard that ward rounds are performed in the evenings and at weekends, in the doctors’ own time.
The ENT Masterclass® ethos remains very strong, with free, high-quality education at its core. Professor Quraishi is as energetic and ambitious as ever – future events this year will be in Doncaster, Cape Town and Bucharest.
For details visit www.entmasterclass.com
Photos:
Prof Shahed Quraishi OBE, Chairman ENT Masterclass, Inaugurating the meeting.
Faculty and delegates at the Head & Neck session
Delegates and faculty at the 4th ENT Nursing Masterclass China
Faculty visiting Wuhan harbour to attend a theatre show on a boat on the Yangtse
Walk in wax removal service at ’Oxford Street’, Wuhan!!
ENT Masterclass Team at Beijing Railway station, set to catch the ‘Bullet train’ to Wuhan-349km/hr.
