October 16-17, 2018, the 10th Sino-German TongjiMed Workshop was successfully held in Tongji Medical College. 66 teachers from various medical departments of our school participated in the workshop.

The opening ceremony was chaired by Prof. PENG Yixiang, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Tongji Medical College. Dean Prof. Chen Jianguo addressed the ceremony and expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the experts from University of Heidelberg for the advanced international medical education concepts and welcomed our staff participating this workshop. Prof. Kirschfink, the head of Heidelberg delegation, reviewed the friendly and cooperation with TMC for the past 37 years and expressed his good expectations for the workshop. Prof. Strittmatter, Dr. Schultz’ team, many administration and academic leaders, Chinese training teachers and trainees attended the opening ceremony.

The workshop is divided into 3 parts: postgraduates’ guidance, cooperation consultation, and doctor-patient communication skills. Prof. Kirschfink, Prof. Strittmatter and Dr. Schultz are the main lecturers. Dr. LIU Wenqi, Dr. HAO Yi, Dr. XI Jiaoya, Dr. ZHAO Gang, Dr. YUE Jing, Dr. WANG Haihao and Dr. DU Junfeng served as Chinese instructors. During the two-day training, participants have mastered new teaching concepts, techniques and curriculum design skills.

In the closing ceremonyon October 17, Prof. DENG Jingping, Deputy Secretary of CPC Branch in TMC, summarized and highly evaluated the workshop. After the closing ceremony, the German expert group and conducted a discussion with our staff representatives on the medical education development strategy from a wider perspective, and more fruitful cooperation expected.

It is suggested that no simple copy of foreign curriculum or teaching methodology could be successful in China and Tongji Medical College should keep its own identity and better combine the Heidelberg Model with Chinese medical culture to train excellent medical students. Heidelberg experts expressed their willingness to help the development of medical education in Tongji, but only through consultation based on their expertise, the best way for Tongji is to localize what they learned through hard practise. The representative of Tongji expressed they will actively apply the teaching concepts, methods and techniques learned in the 10th workshop into teaching practise to enhance their teaching ability and promote the cultivation of medical talents.

This workshop not only cultivated a large number of outstanding teachers for the teaching reform, but also promoted the high-level teacher development and the creation of brands such as sandwich micro-teaching methods with Tongji characteristics. In the future, Germany and China will further deepen cooperation, actively promote the construction of school teachers and personnel training, and help build a model for Tongji medical education.