Department and workflow
Define the clinical focus and connect every step from registration to follow-up.
Project Case · Gansu, China
Building a County Hospital Ophthalmology Center from the Ground Up.
A new department, a trained local doctor and a continuous cataract pathway designed to remain available within the county.
- Location
- Gansu, China
- Institution
- County hospital
- Project type
- Ophthalmology center built from the ground up
- Starting point
- No department
- Workforce developed
- 1 local doctor
- Core surgical capability
- Phaco
- Department revenue after launch
- > RMB 200,000 / month
Why this project mattered
The goal was continuous local cataract care within the county.
Before the project, the hospital had no ophthalmology department and no specialist ophthalmologist. Local cataract patients could not receive a continuous sequence of examination, surgical preparation, treatment and follow-up within the county.
Before Xentra Medical was established, members of its current team worked with the hospital on department positioning, equipment configuration, clinical workflow, doctor development, patient screening and continued operations. The project was designed to turn external support into a service the hospital could continue to operate locally.
Project profile
- Location
- Gansu, China
- Institution
- County hospital
- Project type
- Ophthalmology center built from the ground up
- Starting point
- No ophthalmology department or ophthalmologist
- Clinical focus
- Cataract diagnosis and surgery
- Service pathway
- Screening, examination, preoperative preparation, surgery and follow-up
Before the project
Five gaps prevented a stable local service.
Department, workforce, clinical pathway, patient access and operating capacity all had to be addressed together.
From no department to a locally operated care pathway.
| Five gaps prevented a stable local service. | Before | After project launch |
|---|---|---|
| Department | No ophthalmology department | A new ophthalmology center |
| Workforce | No specialist ophthalmologist | One trained young local doctor |
| Clinical service | No mature cataract diagnosis and surgical pathway | Examination, surgical preparation, phaco surgery and follow-up pathway |
| Patient access | Patients largely depended on care outside the county | Continuous ophthalmology services available within the county |
| Operations | No ophthalmology business revenue | More than RMB 200,000 in monthly ophthalmology business revenue |
Service formation
Three connected foundations made the new center operable.
The project linked a defined department model with clinical resources and a prepared local team.
Equipment and standards
Configure resources for cataract care and establish practical operating norms.
Local doctor and teaching
Combine expert demonstration with real patient assessment, surgery and follow-up.
Define the department and its development path
The team reviewed county needs, the hospital’s existing conditions and an achievable technical starting point. Cataract diagnosis and surgery became the core direction, beginning with outpatient and examination capability and extending to surgical preparation, operative collaboration, follow-up and blindness-prevention services.
Prepare equipment and surgical capability together
Ophthalmic examination and surgical equipment was configured for cataract care. Equipment use, operative collaboration and basic management standards were established alongside doctor development and department operations rather than as an isolated purchase.
How the local service was developed
Prepare one local doctor to deliver phacoemulsification
Through expert guidance and practice-based teaching, one young local doctor developed cataract phacoemulsification capability while also learning patient assessment, surgical preparation, postoperative observation and follow-up management.
A locally capable doctor was the key to continuing the service after the external team left.
Patient journey
From finding a patient to supporting recovery.
The project linked patient identification to treatment and recovery instead of treating screening or surgery as a standalone activity.
Registration, examination, diagnosis, surgical assessment, preoperative preparation and postoperative follow-up were organized into a single service pathway, aligning the service area, equipment use and staff coordination.
- 1
Screening
- 2
Examination
- 3
Preoperative preparation
- 4
Surgery
- 5
Follow-up
Make follow-up part of routine care
Postoperative follow-up was included in the complete pathway so patients could receive recovery checks and necessary guidance, while the hospital established a closed loop from patient identification and diagnosis to treatment and follow-up.
Public support connected to a continuing local service
Use public support to activate lasting capacity
Patient screening and public-benefit support helped local cataract patients access examination and treatment during the early stage. In this project, that support was linked to equipment, doctor development and hospital operations instead of remaining a separate one-off activity.
Each workstream was connected to the next: the service model shaped the workflow, equipment supported that workflow, teaching happened in real clinical practice, and follow-up completed the pathway.
Project outcome
A new local ophthalmology service continued beyond project launch.
The hospital progressed from having no ophthalmology department or ophthalmologist to operating a county ophthalmology center able to provide cataract diagnosis and related services.
It established a local service pathway covering screening, examination, preoperative preparation, phacoemulsification surgery and follow-up. The center became a long-term local platform for cataract care and blindness-prevention services.
Monthly ophthalmology business revenue grew from zero to more than RMB 200,000, providing evidence of a foundation for continued operation.
Discuss a related ophthalmology project
Plan around the patient pathway your hospital wants to provide locally.
Share your hospital’s current ophthalmology service, team, equipment and development goal.
