Online consultation

Duan Yan, deputy director of the Remote Medicine Department at Lu's hospital, said that in addition to providing offline medical services, some hospitals in Xinjiang are trying to expand their scope by setting up transnational medical platforms.

That will allow top experts to offer suggestions, guidance and help for doctors in Central Asian countries via the internet.

"Last year, using this approach, doctors from our hospital offered key advice on the treatment of a woman with a tumor in Kazakhstan, who was unable to visit a doctor in Urumqi," she said, adding that she and her colleagues hope to help more patients from neighboring countries in the future.

Zhang Li, from the hospital affiliated to Xinjiang Medical University, said her institution is working on a platform that will combine online consultations and offline medical services.

A "cloud hospital" transnational medical service network that will connect large hospitals in neighboring countries is also being established, she said.