Strengthening Global Health: FEMH Conducts Metabolic Chronic Disease Training in Belize
Q?hua chu 3 Planning Department Commissioner Chen Yu'an

Far Eastern Memorial Hospital has a long-standing
partnership with the Taiwan ICDF, working deeply in Belize for many years to
provide medical support and strengthen the local public health and healthcare
systems. To continuously advance the " Strengthening of Metabolic Chronic
Disease Prevention and Control System in Belize," Experts form FEMH
traveled to Belize from June 27 to July 4 to execute an on-site training course
and evaluation mission. Through professional courses, on-site evaluations, and
policy exchanges, the mission aimed to enhance the capacity of Belizean medical
staff in metabolic chronic disease care and further deepen medical cooperation
between Taiwan and Belize.
In addition to courting the Ministry of Health and
Wellness of Belize, the delegation engaged in exchanges with the information
technology department and the telemedicine project team. They conducted in-depth
discussions on topics such as clinical decision support systems, clinical data
exchange platforms, and pilot telemedicine projects, sharing Taiwan's
experience in advancing smart healthcare and jointly deliberating on future
directions for cooperation.
As for the
on-site training, FEMH consultants co-lectured with Belizean seed instructors
who completed their training in Taiwan earlier this year. They conducted four
training sessions across the Northern, Central, and Southern regions,
cultivating over 80 medical and health education professionals, including
physicians, nurses, and health educators. This successfully demonstrated the
collaborative model of "training seed instructors for sustainable local
inheritance." The course combined theory and practice; Director Chiang
Chu-ying shared the developmental experience of Taiwan's Shared Care Network
for Diabetes, introducing cross-professional team collaboration, case
management, and chronic disease care models to provide an important reference
for Belize's future establishment of an integrated care system. Furthermore,
Health Educator Hung Ling-yu shared how to utilize AI to assist in creating
health education materials. By leveraging AI to rapidly organize medical
information, design content tailored to different disease themes, and adjust
text and image presentations based on patient needs, the efficiency and quality
of material production were substantially enhanced. The courses also featured
hands-on sessions, guiding participants to experience AI tools in clinical
health education scenarios. This helped frontline medical staff reduce the
burden of creating educational materials, allowing them to dedicate more time
to patient care and health promotion—an approach highly acclaimed by all
attendees.
Beyond the training courses, the FEMH team held a
symposium with the four seed instructors trained this year to understand their
achievements in pushing educational training and clinical applications upon
returning home. The team collected data on the demands and challenges faced
during practical execution, which will serve as vital baselines for subsequent
course planning and project refinement. Concurrently, discussions were held
regarding the next phase of the cooperation project to evaluate the feasibility
of introducing smart healthcare and digital health tools, aiming to fortify the
efficacy of metabolic chronic disease prevention through technological
applications and upgrade the quality of medical services in rural areas.
FEMH has been dedicated to
medical cooperation with Belize for the long term, continuously assisting in
the prevention and control of metabolic chronic diseases, the cultivation of
medical talents, and the development of smart healthcare since 2022, gradually
building local medical expertise. This on-site training mission not only
deepened the medical partnership between Taiwan and Belize but also showcased
Taiwan’s rich experience and international cooperation energy in chronic
disease care, talent cultivation, and smart healthcare, laying a more solid
foundation for the continued promotion of sustainable health development
between both nation