Welcome to Heartbeat, the show that gets to the centre of China's ever-changing lifestyle, but still manages to discover the country's rich cultural heritage. I'm your host Yunfeng.

On today’s edition of “Heartbeat”, we will take a look at the issue of violence against children and the efforts being made by China to address the issue. We’ll go to the Bookworm Literary festival to check out what events and discussions are taking place at the popular annual event. And we’ll also speak with French actor Christopher Lambert who is in town to promote his latest movie called "L'Homme de Chevet".

But first we take you thousands of miles away from China to the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu where a Chinese medical team has been working taking care of local residents for more than 20 years. The female doctors, in particular, are regarded as the embodiment of beauty and kindness. Zhang Cheng has more.

Reporter:

People in Vanuatu have only positive things to say about the Chinese medical team, especially its female members. Local residents see them as angles who have brought health to the country. Even Hanson Matas Kelekele, the former first lady of Vanuatu, was once their patient.
A few years ago, she began to show symptoms of facial paralysis. One of the female doctors in the Chinese medical team helped her.

"The ambassador referred me to doctor Li and doctor Ni, the lady of acupuncture who is very good came to treat me and brought me to where I am now with my facial makeup. I'm back to sort of normal."

In the 1980s, the Chinese government sent a medical team to aid Vanuatu where medical conditions were relatively poor. Up to now, more than 100 Chinese doctors have worked in the Vila Central Hospital and Santo Hospital. Over the years, they have helped cure many diseases among the locals.

Now the seventh Chinese medical team is in the country, three of whom are female, including a gynecologist, an ophthalmologist and an anesthesiologist.

This is an ordinary day for Dong Wei, who works in the obstetrics and gynecology department. The birthrate in Vanuatu is very high, so she has to serve 30 to 40 patients a day. Dong often has to perform cesarean section surgeries at night.

To better communicate with patients and local doctors, the Chinese doctors must study English. Fred Margerrison, their language teacher, says the female doctors have progressed a lot through hard work.

"I've got every essay on my laptop, and you could go and see their improvement. Everyone has been improving, especially doctor Liu tonight. She was very shy at first. She would only say a few words. You could never get more than six words then out of her. And now she can talk for five minutes nonstop. You can see the change."

Despite all the difficulties of their heavy workloads, learning a new language, and poor working and living conditions, homesickness poses the biggest challenge for the Chinese doctors, especially the women. The team is scheduled to stay in Vanuatu for two years with little chance to return to China during this period. Team members are only able to talk to their families via internet phone. As wives and mothers, they cannot take care of their family members.

"My mother-in-law had lived with me till I came here. We were more intimate than mother and daughter. I was really sad to hear of her death. I had no choice but to stay here with my work."

"Sometimes we miss home badly. Everyone does. But we can do nothing. I feel very sorry for my daughter. Every time I call home, she cries, and I just couldn't hold my tears."

"Say a Word in the Heart" is the most popular song among the members of the Chinese medical team in Vanuatu. They sing the song again and again to express their thoughts of home.