“These devices are both smart and efficient, right?” Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif asked with keen interest as he toured the outpatient pharmacy at the Tongzhou Campus of Beijing Anzhen Hospital at noon on September 2, seeking details about the devices’ functions and operations.
It is the first large pharmacy of a Grade 3, Class A hospital in China to realize full-process intelligent management, integrating warehousing, distribution, and verification. From the delivery of medicines by manufacturers, through the hospital’s secondary warehouse and outpatient pharmacy, to the final verification and dispensing to patients, the entire process is seamlessly executed in a closed loop by robotic devices. During the visit, the highly responsive robots frequently drew the attention and admiration of Pakistani officials and media representatives.
At noon on September 2, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif led a delegation to visit the Tongzhou Campus of Beijing Anzhen Hospital. The photo shows Shehbaz (front row, second from left) receiving a briefing in the outpatient building. (Photo by Bai Bo)
During his busy visit to China for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit held in Tianjin and China’s V-Day Commemorations on September 3, Prime Minister Shehbaz took a noon break to tour the medical complex at the Tongzhou Campus of Beijing Anzhen Hospital.
Since its opening last October, the Tongzhou Campus of Beijing Anzhen Hospital has expanded its outpatient departments from 17 to 48, with patient visits rising from 28,000 to 50,000.
In the Clinical Laboratory, robots also play a vital role. Once collected, the blood samples are barcoded, processed by a sorter or received manually, and then delivered by staff and transport robots to specialized teams for testing. This fully automated process has greatly improved efficiency. Prime Minister Shehbaz observed the demonstration closely and listened attentively to briefings from staff on both sides.
The delegation also visited the hospital’s Pediatric Cardiology Center. As the largest pediatric cardiovascular center within a general hospital in China, it is by far the country’s only facility to adopt an integrated medical management model for both pediatric cardiovascular medicine and surgery.
At noon on September 2, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif led a delegation to visit Tongzhou Campus of Beijing Anzhen Hospital. The photo shows Shehbaz (second from right) observing a demonstration of the fully automated process in the Clinical Laboratory. (Photo by Bai Bo)
Since the beginning of this year, medical assistance from Beijing has consistently benefited the people of Pakistan. In January, a team of experts from Fuwai Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (CAMS), traveled to Rawalpindi, Punjab Province, under an emergency program to support congenital heart disease treatment in Pakistan, performing surgeries on eight children for free. During their stay, the team also provided intensive training for approximately 200 local medical professionals. At that time, Pakistan’s First Lady, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, remarked that no other country in the world has shared pioneering medical technologies with Pakistan as selflessly as China.
In June, the Beijing One Heart Sphere Charity Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding with the Fatima Tuz Zahra Medical Center in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, to jointly provide free medical assistance to local underprivileged patients.
On the morning of September 2, during his meeting with the Chinese side, Prime Minister Shehbaz once again highlighted the symbolic “ironclad friendship” between Pakistan and China, solemnly stating: “The ironclad Pakistan-China friendship has taken root in the hearts of the over 200 million Pakistani people, and every generation will cherish China’s selfless support. No force can shake this unbreakable friendship.”
