“Evening Classes in Traditional Chinese Medicine” and “TCM Online”: Traditional Chinese Medicine Continues to Make New Appearances Abroad
Release Date:
2021-03-24
“Evening TCM programs,” “TCM in the Cloud,” “TCM experiences combined with traditional festivals”... As China’s efforts in international exchange and cooperation in TCM continue to advance, Traditional Chinese Medicine is increasingly making its presence felt overseas in innovative ways. The principles of TCM are gradually gaining recognition from the international community, thanks in no small part to the dedicated work of successive “TCM ambassadors.”
The photo shows instructors from the project team posing for a group shot with trainees at the Kyrgyzstan Traditional Chinese Medicine Acupuncture Training Course, a TCM training program for overseas participants jointly undertaken by Gansu University of Chinese Medicine and its affiliated hospital under the auspices of the Chinese Ministry of Education. (File photo) Photo provided by the interviewee.
01 “Traditional Festivals + In-Person Experiences” Expand TCM’s International Network
“By leveraging Kyrgyzstan’s traditional festivals, we have organized in-person experiential activities featuring acupuncture, pulse diagnosis, cupping, and other time-honored TCM practices, thereby sparking considerable interest in TCM culture among local residents,” said Qin Xiaoguang, Director of the China–Kyrgyzstan Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine and Deputy Director of the Acupuncture Center at the Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, in an interview with China News Service on March 21.
Since 2014, Qin Xiaoguang has led his team in making frequent round-trip visits between China and Kyrgyzstan. Over the past seven years, the center has established long-term TCM training partnerships with local universities, Confucius Institutes, and embassies, and has extended this model to several countries and regions in Eastern Europe, West Asia, and Northeast Asia, thereby fostering the establishment and sustainable development of traditional Chinese medicine across the globe.
“The people of Kyrgyzstan have a very high level of appreciation for traditional Chinese medicine,” said Qin Xiaoguang when reflecting on his initial impressions upon arriving in the country. He noted that, thanks to the center’s initiatives offering free consultations and training programs, patient volumes were exceptionally high at the outset, with many local physicians and patients coming to inquire.
Qin Xiaoguang stated that, at present, it has become commonplace for Kyrgyz students to study Traditional Chinese Medicine in Gansu Province. At the affiliated hospital, “Kyrgyz faces” can often be seen; these students are affectionately nicknamed after the names of Chinese medicinal herbs, such as Lingzhi, Baizhi, and Baiwei. Due to the impact of the pandemic, international students are currently unable to come to China to study TCM, and they have been leaving numerous messages expressing their hope that “the epidemic will soon subside so they can return to China to pursue their studies.”
Qin Xiaoguang believes that the next step is to recruit local physicians for the center, gradually achieving localization of its operations, so as to better serve the people of Kyrgyzstan and enable Traditional Chinese Medicine to take root and flourish overseas. “This process will be a long one and may require the concerted efforts of several generations of practitioners.”
The photo shows Zhou Qiang, a senior physician at the Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Chinese Medicine and director of the China–Brazil International Cooperation Base for Traditional Chinese Medicine, conducting online TCM training in Brazil. (File photo) Photo provided by the interviewee.
02 Supporting the Brazilian Medical Team in Establishing “Cloud-Based Traditional Chinese Medicine” to Benefit Overseas Chinese and Chinese Nationals Abroad
Zhou Qiang, 41, is a senior physician at the Affiliated Hospital of Gansu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the director of the China–Brazil International Cooperation Base for TCM. He specializes in TCM tuina therapy and rehabilitation. At the end of 2019, he and his team traveled to Brazil and only recently returned to China.
Following the outbreak, Zhou Qiang spearheaded the establishment of online communication groups. On one hand, these groups coordinated the team’s deployment of proprietary Chinese medicines for disease prevention, shared China’s anti-pandemic experience, produced various epidemic-prevention videos, and facilitated direct communication with patients. On the other hand, emergency liaison teams were set up in collaboration with local chambers of commerce and associations of Chinese-funded enterprises, enabling more convenient and efficient services for local overseas Chinese and Chinese nationals.
What left a deep impression on Zhou Qiang was the case of a Chinese individual who, despite experiencing fever and cough, managed to track down the medical base and undergo an online consultation. After taking the proprietary Chinese medicine formulated by his team, the patient’s symptoms markedly improved, prompting him to post on WeChat Moments: “I’ve personally verified that this is the only place in São Paulo that can save your life.” Subsequently, the patient went on to recommend the clinic to his family and friends. “Receiving such positive feedback truly touched my heart,” Zhou Qiang said.
“Brazilians are very interested in traditional Chinese medicine.” In Zhou Qiang’s view, although the pandemic has necessitated a shift to online training, many local residents have nonetheless participated and enrolled as students. “‘Cloud-based training’ requires the joint involvement of base physicians, local physicians, and interpreters; we have collaborated extremely well and engaged in very in-depth exchanges.”
Before returning to Brazil, the Brazilian physician proactively established long-term communication with Zhou Qiang to facilitate ongoing exchanges and discussions on traditional Chinese medicine, thereby addressing the questions and challenges they encountered in clinical practice and academic study. He stated that the original intention behind these exchanges was to train local TCM practitioners so that they could skillfully apply TCM techniques to serve the Brazilian public. “Although I have left, our friendship has not ended; technical exchanges and collaboration will continue indefinitely.”
The photo shows Wen Xin, a member of the China–Brazil International Cooperation Base for Traditional Chinese Medicine, teaching TCM courses to Brazilian local physicians. (File photo) Photo provided by the interviewee.
03
Gansu Physicians Establish “Traditional Chinese Medicine Evening Program” in Brazil to Teach Ancient Texts on Acupuncture Techniques
Compared with their previous two-year mission providing TCM medical assistance in Madagascar, Wen Xin, a member of the China–Brazil International Cooperation Base for TCM, has an even deeper impression of the “Brazilian journey.” In Brazil, they established an evening TCM program and, during the pandemic, utilized traditional formulas to offer telemedicine consultations to local residents and Chinese expatriates, gaining profound insights into the cross-border exchange of TCM culture.
Speaking about his “first encounter” with traditional Chinese medicine in Brazil, Wen Xin candidly admitted that it was “not entirely smooth.” Due to historical reasons, Brazil has been influenced by TCM enthusiasts from South Korea, Japan, and other countries, resulting in a certain level of TCM literacy and a relatively large number of TCM practitioners. “There are both advantages and disadvantages,” he explained. While local practitioners have a foundation in TCM, they often only grasp the surface level; moreover, language barriers and cultural differences initially posed obstacles to academic exchange. However, after he and his colleagues shifted their teaching philosophy and approaches, the exchanges proceeded smoothly.
Wen Xin recalled that, during their exchanges, Brazilian physicians showed a keen interest in the traditional acupuncture techniques documented in ancient texts, as well as in the clinically proven, highly effective knowledge of TCM that had been distilled through long-term clinical practice. Driven by their passion for TCM and at the request of local practitioners, they conducted daytime consultations and, twice a week, organized “Evening TCM Classes,” teaching these topics from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Even so, many Brazilian physicians were reluctant to leave after the sessions ended, immersing themselves in the practice of acupuncture techniques until the early hours of the following morning.
Since 2013, Gansu Province has established multiple Qihuang Traditional Chinese Medicine Centers or TCM colleges in countries including Belarus, France, Thailand, Hungary, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, Madagascar, and Brazil. Over the years, numerous TCM physicians have been dispatched overseas to provide TCM diagnosis and treatment, free medical consultations, and training, thereby promoting cultural exchange and dissemination of TCM.
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