Two Decades in China: Dr. Roo Reflects

After two decades in China, Dr. Roo Changizi has plenty to reflect on. From being an Emergency Medicine aid worker to becoming the Chair of Center for Family Medicine and Integrative Healthcare at Beijing United Family Hospital (BJU), he’s done a lot of great work, both in Beijing and beyond. Read on to learn more about his journey with medicine in China.

You’ve been in China for 20 years. What keeps you going?

It’s true, and I never had a plan to stay that long – my wife, children, and I were only meant to be away from Canada for six months originally! But this is home now, and it’s been an amazing journey. We’ve met a lot of incredible people with beautiful hearts and minds – people who are thriving, so serious, passionate, and dedicated to progress. Beijing is a city that gives me such energy.

What was it that first brought you here to China?

There had been a series of floods here in China that brought great damage and destruction to people’s lives. I remember watching on TV and saying to my wife that there must be something we could do to help. We had a comfortable life in Montreal, good jobs, and young children, so moving away would be a risk, but sometimes in life you just get a feeling – a calling, even.

So we took the risk. I spent two years jetting all over the country and the region before I felt that I needed to settle for my family’s and my own sake. Fortunately, a job with Beijing United Family Hospital came up, and I haven’t looked back since!

Tell us more about your experiences in disaster relief. When did you first get involved with such activities?

It was in 1998, following Hurricane Mitch, which devastated Central America, in particular Honduras. It had rained for four days straight, there was a mudslide that covered many parts of the city of Tegucigalpa. Airports, roads, and hospitals closed, and vast swathes of arable land had been destroyed. 

Watching it unfold from afar, I knew I couldn’t just sit there and do nothing. When you know you have the ability to help those in need, it’s very selfish to keep it to yourself. I’ve been very fortunate to have had access to some of the highest quality education around – it would have been selfish to not help. How could you live with yourself otherwise?

I was working in an ER in Montreal at the time, and I began to print flyers asking for donations of medications, canned food, blankets, water – anything of use and benefit. I was also fortunate enough to meet a patient who had a shipping company and offered us an empty container to send to Honduras. 

We filled it within two weeks. I headed off to Honduras and spent two weeks there. It was an incredible experience, from which I learned a lot. People were devastated, and I witnessed a lot of destruction and many disputes, but they all came to resolution. People came together and they started distributing the donations more efficiently and fairly, and Honduras began to recover.

Ten years later, here in China, you were involved in the Sichuan earthquake relief efforts, too. What are your memories of that experience?

That was a truly heartbreaking time, though the response I saw there was touching, as people put their own personal safety and priorities aside and came together to help one another.

When we heard about Sichuan, it was completely devastating – tens of thousands of men, women, and children died. So, I spoke with the hospital and said I wanted to go. We put some medications together and set off.

Arriving there, we saw some unfathomable scenes – huge boulders as big as buildings were rolling down from the mountain, ripping it apart, leaving scars upon it and the towns and roads below. Many roads were blocked, so you had to find ways over, around rocks, over mountains, and through waters. It was a very scary time, but still we could see the brave smiles on people’s faces.

Everybody had to work together, dragging bodies and casualties from under the rubble. Hospitals were filled, and there were so many fractures, compressions, and kidney failures. Dialysis machines, transfusions – there was so much needed, but it was all in such short supply.

I was housed in a tent at a stadium where thousands were taking refuge. One of the biggest risks during these disasters is outbreaks, in particular cholera, and I arrived expecting to be using my expertise in infection control, as well as emergency medicine, but everything had been taken care of so well.

Not even one single outbreak was recorded in Sichuan, because the first thing they did was to make sure there were latrines and a fresh water supply. Once you have these two, then the risk is usually controlled. 

All in all, these experiences have taught me that there is something you can do, just as one small person. I’m not anybody special, I’m just a regular doctor who sees his patients every day, but I feel like people are my family wherever they are. Wherever I’ve gone, I’ve always looked to make friends and to make a difference. China has certainly given me the opportunity to meet many amazing people and make true friends, and I can only hope that I’ve made a difference during my many years here.

As Chair of Beijing United Family Hospital’s Center for Family Medicine and Integrative Healthcare, Dr. Roo Changizi continues to make a difference to people’s lives every day. If you have any health concerns you wish to discuss with him or any of BJU’s experienced doctors, please do not hesitate to schedule an appointment via our 24-hour hotline at 4008-919191.

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