Doctor with a cure

[Photo provided to China Daily]

"Of course your first reaction is to call the person you trust most," Shia says. "And I certainly cautioned her to be careful the next time."

"That's what GPs should be like, you come to us no matter how big the problem is," says Tang Juan, a general practitioner who worked with Shia at Haiyuncang. "We're their family and friends."

"Dr Shia would never wear a doctor's overalls (at Haiyuncang)," says Tang, who has been a GP for 11 years in Beijing. "Because whenever the kids see a white gown, they burst into tears."

Shia is meticulous with his suit and tie, and he demands precision in everything he does.

"There is no 'about' or 'around' in Shia's dictionary," Tang says. "For him, whatever you say must have a valid source, down to the price of a syringe."

"Whenever he does check-ups, he looks at my feet to check for signs of diabetes," Shan Guilan, a resident at Haiyuncang, once told People's Daily. "He's very gentlemanly."

Perhaps that's why Shia is able to answer the real questions patients have.

"Sometimes it's not enough to just cure them," Shia says. "If you don't answer the underlying question, or understand their real concern, there will be misunderstandings that easily escalate. For family doctors, the focus is on people."

But to prove the system really works, Shia is planning a next step. "I hope to go to the rural areas where there are the most people and the situation is different," he says.