HANGZHOU, May 8 (Xinhua) -- A hospital in Yiwu, a bustling trade hub in east China's Zhejiang Province, has launched an AI-powered bilingual medical examination report service as part of its latest efforts to break language barriers for foreign patients.
The new service offered by the Fourth Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, allows foreign patients to apply for free English versions of their medical examination reports.
Dubbed "the world's supermarket," the city of Yiwu is an international hub for the production and trade of small commodities. The hospital's bilingual initiative is part of efforts to improve healthcare services for the city's large community of foreign traders and residents.
Earlier this year, the hospital deployed the popular AI model DeepSeek into its outpatient and inpatient systems, which has assisted doctors in keeping medical records. In April, it added the AI-powered medical examination report translation service, streamlining the process that has been traditionally reliant on time-consuming human translation.
The service leverages AI to instantly generate English translations of medical reports, which are then checked and reviewed by doctors and medical experts to ensure accuracy.
"Just one click and the draft translation is done immediately," said Zhang Yunyun from the hospital's ultrasound department. "Doctors then check the content, followed by expert review to finalize the report.”
The bilingual service is currently available across multiple departments, including radiology, pathology, ultrasound, and electrocardiography.
A patient from Lebanon, who was identified as Nesir, recently received English versions of five medical reports at the hospital. He said the service finally enabled him to understand the medical examination reports on his own when seeing doctors in China.
A foreign doctor working at the hospital introduced the service to Nesir. With the English versions, Nesir's doctors back in Lebanon can also participate in treatment discussions.
In addition to English-version reports, the hospital also offers international commercial insurance direct billing and medical escort services. It has signed agreements with 22 global insurance companies to expand the one-stop direct billing service.
Last year, the hospital offered medical services for 19,950 foreign patients, the highest number among hospitals in Zhejiang Province. The hospital also has an international outpatient department with English-speaking doctors, an English version hospital appointment registration system, as well as medical escorts and volunteers.
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