Residents of Puli Township (埔里), Nantou County, are mourning the death of a medical missionary who spent more than three decades caring for people there.
Alfhild Jenfen, who first came to Taiwan in 1962, passed away in Norway on Sunday, the Puli Christian Hospital said. She was 92.
She will be remembered most notably for her efforts to change the lives of children suffering with polio, the hospital said.
Jenfen arrived to work at the hospital as a surgical anesthetist at a time when polio was prevalent among Aboriginal children in remote areas of the country.
Jenfen met her husband Bjarne Gislefoss, who was working as a senior nurse at the hospital, and the two devoted themselves to treating Aboriginal children and members of the local community.
The couple collected donations from abroad to establish a special unit for children with polio in 1966.
They also invited specialist physicians to visit Taiwan to work in the unit and arranged classes for children whose long hospital stays meant they missed out on schooling. Their efforts helped the hospital become a pioneer in the treatment of polio in Taiwan.
Jenfen received two Medical Dedication Awards from the government in 1990 and 1991, and the couple were granted honorary permanent residency in 2002.
Jenfen and Gislefoss retired in 1997, and they split their time between Taiwan and Norway.
Jenfen fell ill on a trip to Norway four years ago and was never able to return to Taiwan.
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