Local medical facilities are opening to the public as a regular program to enhance communication with patients, streamline health education, and inspire young people’s interest in medicine.
Expatriates actively participate in such events, and visiting hospitals that use traditional Chinese medicine and experiencing TCM therapies are the most attractive programs for them.
At a recent event, a dozen Japanese people visited the Shanghai Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine to experience TCM-based health checkup, sample therapies such as tuina, try herbal tea, and do TCM exercises.
Many of the Japanese visitors said TCM was very interesting and they would consider TCM for their health-care needs in the future.
Japanese visitors learn TCM-based exercises at Yueyang hospital.
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A Japanese experiences tuina during the open hospital event.
Officials from local health authorities hailed the practice and said sharing the mysteries of the operating theater, laboratories, and doctors’ offices gave the public a close look at medical staff’s work, experiencing the challenges of medical practice, seeing the high-end technology, and learning how doctors feel.
“It is a good way to help the public have a better understanding of the health sector and also collect public opinion and suggestions to improve and renovate the health service and achieve better efficiency,” said Zhao Dandan from the Shanghai Hospital Development Center, which oversees all 37 city-level hospitals in Shanghai.
Showcasing the latest technology is one of the major purposes of hospital openings, especially for young people and children.
Renji Hospital invited students to visit its nucleic chemistry and nano-medicine key laboratory; the Shanghai Eye Disease Prevention and Control Center allows minors to experience AI-supported eye disease screening equipment; and the Changhai Hospital invited children to see observe blood transfusions, disinfection, and the laboratory.
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A student looks with interest in the laboratory.
All of the hospital openings were carefully designed for the purpose of public education and some programs were tailored to special groups such as the elderly, autistic children, disabled people, and people with emergencies, hospital officials said.
Zhongshan Hospital said it sent its nursing teams to local communities and elderly homes to promote health-care knowledge and enhance the elderly’s awareness of chronic disease prevention and control. The Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital invited pregnant women and their families to visit the labor room and showcase the whole process of delivery to release their anxiety; while the Yangzhi Rehabilitation Hospital showed the latest technology and smart equipment for rehabilitation and support to disabled people to raise public awareness about care for the disabled.
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A doctor explains the use of herbs to children during a hospital opening.