Disease Spectra of Inpatients from Foreign Countries and Those from Hong Kong and Taiwan in Peking Union Medical College Hospital from 2011 to 2013

  Objective  To investigate the demographic characteristics, disease spectrum, and clinical features of inpatients from foreign countries and those from Hong Kong and Taiwan of China.

  Methods  The general information and clinical data of foreign inpatients as well as inpatients from Hong Kong and Taiwan who had been admitted to the Department of International Medical Services at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2011 to December 2013 were retrospectively collected and analyzed.

  Results  A total of 557 patients were enrolled in this study. Among them there were 216 males and 341 females, with an average age of 45.5 years old.The age of 379 patients (68.0%) were between 30 and 59 years old. These 557 patients were from 76 countries and 2 regions of China (Hong Kong and Taiwan). The top three foreign countries were the United States (n=123, 22.1%), Canada (n=66, 11.8%), and Australia (n=45, 8.1%).Diseases during pregnancy, delivery, and puerperium (n=124, 22.3%), tumors(n=78, 14.0%), and digestive system diseases(n=65, 11.7%) were the top three causes of hospitalization. Of all these 557 patients, 187(33.6%) were admitted from emergency department, 103(18.5%) were severe or difficult cases, and 29(5.2%) were once transferred from or to intensive care unit. The average hospital stay was 7.1 days. On discharge, 50.5%(n=281) of these patients were cured, 49.0%(n=273) improved, and 0.5%(n=3) died.

  Conclusions  Inpatients from foreign countries as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan admitted to the Department of International Medical Services at Peking Union Medical College Hospital have a large age span, big regional difference, broad spectra of diseases, and high proportions of severe and difficult diseases. Besides favorable hospitalization environment and patient-centered services, fluent communication in foreign languages, rich clinical experiences, ability to quickly identify severe cases, and coordination among different departments are also needed to offer high-quality and effective medical services for these patients.