China News Service, Beijing, March 9 (Reporter Zhao Yejiao) A few months ago, Huang Wenxiu, a representative of the National People's Congress and Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, led a team to promote traditional Chinese medicine culture and free clinics abroad. He was deeply impressed by the sights he encountered. : Hundreds of overseas Chinese in Argentina have signed up for medical consultation, and overseas Chinese in Chile have been asking when domestic experts will come again. Traditional Chinese medicine granules and Chinese herbal ointments are in short supply.
The sight gave him mixed feelings.
Fortunately, traditional Chinese medicine is still very popular overseas, but worryingly, local Chinese medicine diagnosis and treatment resources are scarce and unable to meet the needs of overseas Chinese.
"While leveraging the power of overseas Chinese to promote the international spread of traditional Chinese medicine culture, we should also expand the ways to provide traditional Chinese medicine health care diagnosis and treatment services to overseas compatriots." Huang Wenxiu said in an interview with China News Service during the National Two Sessions.
Huang Wenxiu, deputy to the National People's Congress and secretary of the Party Committee of Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Photo provided by interviewee
China is the birthplace of traditional Chinese medicine.
In recent years, the process of "going overseas" of traditional Chinese medicine culture has accelerated, but it still faces the dilemma of only "going out" but not "going in".
Huang Wenxiu has a deep understanding of this.
On November 21, 2023, the "Family China" Chinese Medicine Group held a free clinic in Argentina.
Photo courtesy of Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine
In November 2023, he joined the Zhejiang Provincial Overseas Chinese Federation's "Family China" Traditional Chinese Medicine Group and visited Argentina, Chile and Ecuador to carry out activities such as cultural promotion and free medical clinics for overseas Chinese.
In 10 days, they held 3 lectures and 4 free clinics, and were warmly welcomed by local overseas Chinese wherever they went.
But they also discovered problems: on the one hand, local Chinese medicine service venues are scarce, and Chinese medicine talents are extremely lacking; on the other hand, the accessibility of Chinese medicine is poor, and Chinese patent medicines, Chinese medicine preparations, etc. are basically brought out of the country through individual actions.
He believes that it is necessary to use the power of overseas Chinese to promote the international spread of traditional Chinese medicine culture. While further enhancing overseas people's recognition of traditional Chinese medicine culture, it can also broaden the ways to provide overseas compatriots with traditional Chinese medicine health care diagnosis and treatment services.
In response to the shortage of Chinese medicine talents abroad, Huang Wenxiu suggested cultivating a group of local Chinese medicine talents with solid knowledge and skills of Chinese medicine, serving the local area and having an international perspective.
During this visit, Zhejiang University of Chinese Medicine signed a memorandum of understanding with the Guayaquil Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinic and Simiao Weihua International School in Ecuador on cooperative industry-university-research projects, proposing to carry out traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture and massage, traditional Chinese medicine, etc. Long-term and short-term cooperation in professional fields to explore feasible ways to cultivate local Chinese medicine talents.
Talent is "soft power", and traditional Chinese medicine culture must rely on long-term "hard support" to "go overseas".
Huang Wenxiu said that forming a long-term mechanism for exchanges and assistance with overseas medical systems is the key to the "going overseas" of traditional Chinese medicine culture.
Through top-level design, relevant policies can be formulated, and overseas Chinese can be used to contact local resources and social forces to provide local people with diversified diagnostic and treatment services featuring traditional Chinese medicine.
In 2022, Zhejiang University of Chinese Medicine was approved as a national characteristic service export base (TCM). He believes that we can rely on several favorable policies of the base and unite the strength of overseas Chinese to actively explore the feasibility of exporting traditional Chinese medicine and its preparations and overseas registration of traditional Chinese medicine products. path to expand a broader international market space for traditional Chinese medicine service trade.
In the context of the information age, the international dissemination of traditional Chinese medicine culture must be more diverse and flexible.
Currently, the China-New Zealand Traditional Chinese Medicine Center built by Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine is developing an international regional service APP for traditional Chinese medicine health care and developing functions such as online consultation and popularization of traditional Chinese medicine.
"Once it takes shape, this model can also be replicated in other countries." Huang Wenxiu hopes that through this convenient and daily method, the ways to provide overseas compatriots with traditional Chinese medicine health care diagnosis and treatment services can be broadened, and at the same time, it can also further enhance overseas people's understanding of China. Identity of medical culture.
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