when thinking of traditional chinese medicine (tcm) doctors, what image comes into your mind? this doctor may challenge your assumptions!
the doctor, who speaks fluent chinese, is diarra boubacar. hailing from the african country of mali, he is the first foreigner to complete a phd in tcm in china and has studied and practised it for more than 30 years.
boubacar initially studied general surgery, but his love of tcm led him to change course. this was the start of his tcm journey.
from reading ancient chinese books and understanding the nature of tcm to putting theory into practice, learning tcm is not easy, and it's even more difficult for a foreigner.
but boubacar didn't give up and put what he learned into practice. his early patients didn't believe in his medical skills, but were later attracted by his fame, as he was accepted by more and more patients.
diarra has also worked to bring tcm to africa and the rest of the world.
"in recent years, we can see the role of tcm in the world, especially in epidemic prevention and control. the development of tcm will also drive the development of traditional medicine around the world. traditional chinese medicine is borderless, regardless of cultural background," he said.
check out the video to see boubacar's tcm story.