It is with a dream to contribute myself in women’s health care, I (Jigyasa Subedi from Nepal) pursued to study Obstetrics and Gynecology. The dream came into reality when I got selected in 2014 in the world’s renowned Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China under government scholarship program.  Hunan has been the landmark province renowned for the birthplace of honorary Chairman Mao Zedong and Changsha as its beautiful capital city with historic importance.  Leaving my family back home I marched to Hunan with mixed feelings. On one side I was excited to find myself walking on the way to my dream and the other side anxious and a little fearful of totally new environment that I have to adjust. Initially, living at the homely international hostel, I learnt the Chinese language and adjusted to Chinese food and attended the basic classes. At the end of 6 months after passing through basic classes, I was handed a paper mentioning the name of my teacher Prof Dabao Xu in The Third Xiangya hospital. I was excited to meet him because I knew the rest of my career will be determined by the knowledge and impression he will impart on me.

Native of Liuan, Anhui ,Prof Dabao Xu  is a professor, chief physician and vice director in the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology department  of The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, China. He has expertise in clinical skills assessment of medical trainee in Xiangya School of Medicine, as well as government procurement assessment in Hunan Province. He has been honored “Top Ten Youth”, and his course was awarded “Top Ten” of the University. Being in the forefront of clinical, teaching and research work for 20 years, he has accumulated abundant of experiences. He has been honored “Excellent Teaching Quality” in the university for three times. Invited and financially supported by America Austria Foundation (AAF), he has been to Salzburg, Austria for an academic communication in the year of 2005 and 2011, respectively. Supported by Yale-China Association, he has been to Yale-New Hospitals a visiting scholar from Jan. 2009 to May 2009. With the experience and skills of more than 50,000 hysteroscopy, he has a unique understanding of minimally invasive gynecology, and has published 15 original articles in hysteroscopy. He has proposed “hysteroscopy in virgins” and “use of suction curettage in operative hysteroscopy,” (published in the Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology), as well as “hysteroscopic correction of previous cesarean scar defect” and “comprehensive treatment protocol for severe intrauterine adhesion”. His research interests focus on basic and clinical research relating to hysteroscopic techniques, and currently having research support from National Natural Science Foundation of China, and 3 provincial research grants. In addition, he is very much interested in inventing new devices for potential clinical use, and has been authorized 6 China Utility Model Patents and 3 China Invention Patents. Being a professor, he is engaged in continuing medical education for rural and remote doctors.

I was so happy that I got the chance to be student of such a renowned professor. I went to meet him in hospital where I came to know that he was in USA. Sponsored by China Scholarship Council, he has been on training at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston TX since September 2014. I was disheartened not to find my teacher with me in the hospital. But as soon as I reach my dormitory I got an international call and it was from my professor. I was so happy. Tears rolled down for uncontrolled emotions hearing and feeling his care and concern to me as his student even he had been staying miles away in USA. He asked me to meet one of his student and I met her and finally she oriented me about the Outpatient department (OPD), Inpatient department (IPD), Operation rooms of hospital and introduced me to different professors, nurses, seniors, my classmates and juniors and other staffs of hospital and made familiar with different rules and regulations of hospital. With the recommendation of my professor I worked under many professors and they were very helpful and I learned many things from them. Teacher Sun Xin has been exceptional helpful and caring during the absence of Prof. Dabao Xu.

Though my teacher was in USA I was in regular touch with him and updated my curricular activities to him. He always guided me how to work further. After he came back I worked under him and assisted him in many operations, attended conferences, participated in many round table chats. His polite voice, kind, helping, caring nature and attentive attitude towards his patients always encouraged me to work more hard for my patients. And it makes me so proud to say that he is one of the few doctors with gifted and blessed hands. I mean he is outstanding in his operative skills so I got to learn many more techniques from him. He also supervised me to publish a Case Report as a first author and also another video article as Co-author. Still it is fresh in my mind of that day when he called me and my classmate to discuss about the experiment for our dissertation. From that very day till the end of our final defense he continually supervised us. He helped us to design out experiment, to draft the manuscript in correct format and provided us with many literature articles related to our topic. One fine day we received the good news that Professor was awarded with the “Best Video on Hysteroscopy” at 45^th AAGL Global Congress in Orland, Florida, UAS in November 2016. I was proud of him and at the same time I realized the importance of walking an extra mile more for excellence.

There is a saying that “There is time for everything and a season for every activity under heavens”.  Prof. Dabao Xu, despite being very busy, was always available for us in our academic needs. He also arranged gatherings for his students in hotels outside college premises. I being a foreigner living away from the family, he used to inquire frequently about my hostel, my comfort and my family back home. I also feel lucky that I got chance to learn many things from his beloved wife, Ass. Prof. Cheng Chun Xia during my postings in obstetrics department. I also learnt to cook a delicious Chinese food recipe from her when I was invited for a dinner. The two daughters were like sisters to me. They all always made me feel homely when I was invited at home to celebrate Chinese festivals.

One in all, my professor is an institution for me from where I could learn many things related to academics, Chinese cultures, and social behaviors and more importantly he helped me shape to a better human being. Working under him all for three years has been such a blessing, and I couldn't be more grateful. He really has given me an extra dimension and a new approach to my knowledge of  gynecology and obstetrics and  research methodology  along with  patient  care  and human behavior. My utmost gratitude towards my professor for guidance and support not only during my thesis period but also throughout my postings in the hospital and life in China. He is a wonderful human being whose wisdom, knowledge and commitment to the highest standards always motivates and inspires me. I am blessed to be his student. Lastly I want to say “Thank you Sir! I (Jigyasa Subedi) am really privileged to have gotten an opportunity to be your student. I salute you!!”