Sister to Sister

The following is an article regarding Sister to Sister's International Cardiologist Exchange Program that was written for The George Institute's International Center for Chronic Disease Prevention.  It's a wonderful testament to Mrs. Pollin's vision that the doctors were so deeply affected by the STS program that they now consider themselves on a crusade for women's heart health.

Unmasking China's Silent Killer

In China, cardiovascular disease is a secret killer. It is the most common cause of death for women, but few people know it. The majority of women are unaware of its causes, symptoms and effective prevention methods. Research shows that most people still believe breast cancer is the biggest threat to women, and that cardiovascular disease is mostly suffered by men.

This lack of understanding has become a major obstacle for health specialists dealing with cardiovascular disease in China. As part of the women's heart-health program initiated by the Sister to Sister Foundation and The George Institute China, two leading Chinese cardiologists recently visited some of the top research centers in America. Dr Meilin Liu, Deputy Director in the Department of Geriatrics at the First Hospital of Peking University, and Dr Yundai Chen, Director of the Cardiovascular Department at the PLA General Hospital, were able to learn from the cardiology experiences of their American colleagues. Their visit was generously sponsored by the American Women for International Understanding.

The twelve-day visit in late February and early March, 2010 was extremely beneficial, said Dr Liu. "We found there were also problems with understanding and preventing the disease in the US, but the good thing is they have built up a comprehensive system to publicize, treat and prevent the disease."

"An effective health communication system is something China is really lacking at the moment," Dr Chen added. "In the US you feel there is strong social pressure to support the idea of having a healthy heart, from the President's wife to restaurant chefs. And the media is doing a great job in spreading and promoting public health messages. In the health communication area, the US is at least ten years ahead of China."

During their stay the two doctors visited some of America's leading health practitioners at the National Heart Lung Blood Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, George Washington University Hospital and Adventist Healthcare.

Dr Chen said: "The non-government organizations in America are extremely powerful. They can start a public campaign and then use their influence to lobby the government to adjust policy.

"But in China, we mostly rely on the government to initiate change. So our first task is to make the government realize this is an important issue," she added.

"We were simply clinical cardiologists in the past, but now we are becoming advocators for women's heart health. We are trying to promote a healthier lifestyle to China's hundreds of millions of women. After all, preventing is more important than curing."

The George Institute China is also committed to the same goal of raising public awareness and encouraging prevention and high-quality research to improve women's heart health in China.