On the afternoon of October 25th, the celebration of the 110th Birthday of Prof. QIU Fazhu and the 2024 Sino-German Medical Education Forum, hosted by Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, were successfully held in Wuhan. Over a hundred experts, scholars, and student representatives from Chinese and German universities attended the event to explore the development paths of, and promote Sino-German cooperation in medical education.

The opening ceremony of the forum was chaired by ZHANG Yonghui, Vice President of Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

Prof. YOU Zheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, delivered the opening speech on behalf of the university. He mentioned the long-time history of Sino-German medical education cooperation that originated from Tongji, remembered the outstanding contributions of Prof. Qiu Fazhu to Sino-German medical exchanges, and looked forward to the further mutual interaction between Chinese and German universities in the field of medical education.

Ms. LIN Huiqing, the Director of the Expert Committee of Medical Education of the Ministry of Education, Vice Chairman of the China Association of Higher Education, and Deputy Minister of Education, gave a keynote speech. She pointed out that, to build up a well-rounded education system in China, it is necessary to establish an independent cultivation system for nurturing outstanding and innovative medical talents. She believed that the unbalanced development in the medical education system should be addressed with greater endeavor; medical education should be further reformed and more effort should be made to promote international exchanges and cooperation. This way, China's medical education will embark on a path to its goal of a world-class medical system with Chinese features. She also expressed her expectation for the development of the alliance, hoping that its members can play a leading role and make new and greater progress.

In the special report session, Professor LIU Depei, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and former President of Peking Union Medical College, and Professor Rienka Offringa from Heidelberg University School of Medicine, on the strength of their experience in scientific research and teaching, shared their notions about the graduate education of medical students.  

Professor FAN Xiangqun, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Vice President of Shanghai JiaoTong University, and Professor Michael Kirschfink from Heidelberg University School of Medicine talked about their universities' exploration in the innovation and reform of medical education, analyzed the medical education reform in the two countries, and presented the results attained.

Professor WANG Weimin, Deputy Director of Peking University Health Science Center and Vice Chairman of the Western Pacific Region of the World Federation for Medical Education, analyzed the challenges faced by the fourth generation of medical education and their impact on the existing medical education system, and discussed the strategies in the context of the fourth generation of medical education. Professor Diethard Gemsa from the Philipps University of Marburg School of Medicine presented his ideas about how the forefront of science, such as artificial intelligence, can promote the development of medical education and clinical research.

Professor LU Mengji from the Medical School of Duisburg-Essen University and Professor LIU Jihong, Chairman of the Sino-German Medical Association, reviewed the achievements in the exchange in medical education between Chinese and German universities, looked forward to the future cooperation in more fields, such as medical AI, infectious and rare diseases, and hospital information management, and put forward suggestions for the future cooperation in medical education between the two countries.

The forum was were co-hosted by Professor WANG Weimin, Professor LU Mengji, Professor YUAN Yufeng, Vice President of Wuhan University, and Professor LI Zhihong, Vice President of Central South University.

Sino-German Medical Education Forum is an event sponsored by the Sino-German Medical Education Alliance, which was jointly initiated by our university and Heidelberg University and other Chinese and German universities in 2022. It is committed to promoting exchanges and discussions between Chinese and German experts and scholars on medical education and training. It has made great contributions to the reform, research, and exploration of medical education.

The forum's special reports were co-hosted by Professor WANG Weimin, Professor LU Mengji, Professor YUAN Yufeng, Vice President of Wuhan University, and Professor LI Zhihong, Vice President of Central South University.

It is reported that the Sino-German Medical Education Forum is a meeting held under the Sino-German Medical Education Alliance, which was jointly initiated by our university and Heidelberg University and other Chinese and German universities in 2022. It is committed to promoting exchanges and discussions between Chinese and German experts and scholars on medical education and talent training, and actively contributing to the reform, research, and exploration of medical education.