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Exchange medical students impressed by China’s public safety, healthcare system

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China

Exchange medical students impressed by China’s public safety, healthcare system

2026-05-02 17:42 Last Updated At:21:57

American medical students and doctors have spoken warmly about their experiences in China, expressing admiration for China's public safety and efficient healthcare system during their exchange visit in China.

The delegation, consisting of 15 American medical students and doctors, is on a 10-day tour of leading hospitals in Beijing, Shanghai, and Changsha City in central China's Hunan Province.

During their visit at Peking Union Medical College Hospital in Beijing, members of the delegation shared impressions of their experience. They praised the professionalism of Chinese medical staff, the public safety, and the efficiency of the healthcare system.

"I have only been here for 10 days, but I really enjoyed my time in China. I found that Chinese people have a lot of hospitality and they are very kind. And I feel, for example, safe to walk down the street at night, which may not be the case in bigger cities in the U.S. I have also found that the healthcare system here is very robust," said Hanin Elhagehassan, a medical student in clinical medicine from the University of Michigan.

"We don't really have discussions necessarily about all of the transformation that you have here. We see some pictures of maybe drones and robots. But to see everybody living here, the streets are so clean, everyone is so safe and your group has been so nice, and the professors are so knowledgeable and fast and efficient. The patients all seem they are getting wonderful care. It's really nice to see," said Nina Yoh, a resident physician in neurosurgery at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

"One of the safest country I have ever been in, I think. I felt really comfortable the whole time, especially before the conference started, I got the chance to go for some vacation in Hangzhou and take some bullet trains to see some beautiful nature in China. And I felt quite comfortable and safe. We even had some people watch our bags on the streets at one point," said Jeremy Hogaboom, another medical student in clinical medicine from the University of Michigan.

Hogaboom was also struck by the lack of weapon-related injuries that occur in Chinese cities.

"We were talking with the emergency department here. There's only one single stabbing case at PUMC Hospital in the last year despite the hospital being more than twice size as my home institution. That was really crazy," the medical student said.

Exchange medical students impressed by China’s public safety, healthcare system

Exchange medical students impressed by China’s public safety, healthcare system

Maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz declined sharply this week, with daily transits falling to just seven vessels on Thursday, half the volume recorded the day before, Belgian shipping analytics firm Kpler said in a social media update on Friday.

Of the seven vessels, four were outbound from the Persian Gulf and three inbound. Three of the ships were identified as having links to Iran, Kpler noted.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Treasury warned Friday that any shippers paying tolls to Iran for passage through the strategic waterway are at risk of punitive sanctions.

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) under the department said the United States is aware of "Iranian threats to shipping" and demands for payments to receive safe passage through the strait, and the demands may include several payment options, including fiat currency, digital assets, offsets, informal swaps, or nominally charitable donations made to the Iranian Red Crescent Society.

"OFAC is issuing this alert to warn U.S. and non-U.S. persons about the sanctions risks of making these payments to, or soliciting guarantees from, the Iranian regime for safe passage," an OFAC advisory said. "These risks exist regardless of payment method."

The Strait of Hormuz handles roughly 20 percent of the world's seaborne oil flows. Iran tightened its grip on the vital waterway after Israel and the United States launched their joint strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. The U.S. imposed a naval blockade targeting ships going to and from Iran.

Daily crossings through Strait of Hormuz drop to 7 vessels: Kpler data

Daily crossings through Strait of Hormuz drop to 7 vessels: Kpler data

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