The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center presents a screening of the documentary Barefoot Doctor Sun Lizhe, followed by a question-and-answer session the doctor, on March 27.
This documentary film recounts Dr. Sun Lizhe's remarkable experience as a barefoot doctor in rural China and offers a glimpse of China's healthcare condition during and shortly after the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Described as "Chinese Dr. Zhivago" in the film, Sun's distinguished life began from his decision to become a "barefoot doctor" when he was an 18-year-old educated youth from Beijing sent down to the countryside. He had since saved numerous lives by performing difficult surgery when emergency situations arose. For example, he once manually removed a placenta from a peasant women's uterus during her placental dystocia. In villages where medical resources were extremely limited, Sun devoted himself to the healthcare of peasants, performing more than 3000 operations in the cave dwellings of Shaanxi province. In 1974 he was selected by Chairman Mao as one of China's five model "educated youths."The event starts at 3:00 pm in the Thornburgh Room of the Hillman Library (map) and is free and open to the public.
The film directed by Xu Tong will be followed by a Q&A with Dr. Sun Lizhe.
