Annual Report 03-2015 to 03-2016
    1. Please briefly describe the progress made in the implementation of your agreed workplan as WHO collaborating centre during the past 12 months (or the reporting period listed above). Please report on how each workplan activity was implemented, if any outputs have been delivered, if any results have been achieved and if any difficulties have been encountered during this time. If an activity has previously been completed, has not started yet, or been placed on hold, please indicate this.
Activity 1
Title: Promote the public understanding of TM practice and products
Description: Traditional forms of medicine are normally used in a holistic context involving lifestyle changes, customers need to be aware of the risks and benefits of traditional medicine practice and products to make informed decisions about their health choice. The activity intends to introduce Chinese Medicine through Confucius Institute, a collaborative project with RMIT University in Australia established to promote the study of Chinese culture and language.
The center continued to explore new modes of combining Chinese language teaching together with Chinese medicine by setting up the Chinese Language in a Chinese Medicine Clinical Setting course in the Chinese Medicine Confucius Institute. Many students attended the above-mentioned course before they came to our institution for the TCM clinical practice.
As an innovative project of Chinese Medicine Confucius Institute, the Chinese Medicine Culture Salon has been held with the purpose to establish a communication channel between practitioners of Chinese medicine and western medicine and the local public since 2014. Lectures were held at schools and communities. The salon was held four times last year, attracting more than 400 local teachers and students as well as community residents.
Moreover, the center launched a project sponsored by the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine to start with Chinese Medicine Cultural Tour to Australia last December and then further expand to education and health care area with Chinese Medicine in the coming years. Our institution organized a series of activities during the Cultural Tour including initiating workshops of TCM, hosting TCM exhibition and presenting cultural performance of TCM.
Through the above activities, the understanding and appreciation of Chinese Medicine embedded in Chinese culture has been enhanced for all walks of Australian societies.
 
Activity 2
Title: Develop and provide training program and opportunity of TM
Description: It is important that traditional medicine providers have sufficient knowledge to assess advantages and limitations, and have confidence in the quality, safety and effectiveness of traditional medicine. The activity intends to develop diverse education programs in traditional medicine and provide training opportunities as appropriate at the request of WHO Headquarters and Regional Office for health care providers and relevant researchers at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine
Basically, the Center provides international students with three types of TCM education, which are long-term training program ended with academic degree, short-term training program ended with certificate and advanced training program for TCM practitioners. In the last year, there were 358 international students involved in long-term training program, 192 involved in short-term training program and 20 involved in advanced training program respectively. Besides, various methods have been introduced by the centre to encourage the development of practical skills for students. As such, clinical observation and practice are well arranged during the training period.
 
Activity 3
Title: Strengthen working relations with WHO/HQ, WHO/RO and other WHO CCs
Description: WHO Executive Board encourages WHO CCs to develop working relations with other centres by creating or joining collaborative networks. Region or country-specific efforts have also been included in this networking. For better alignment with WHO programs, the activity intends to introduce new synergies and peer-to-peer opportunities for WHO CCs through network establishment within and between countries.
In the last year, the center was invited to attend six WHO conferences/workshops as followed.
Ø  The Interregional Training Workshop on Developing Policy and Regulation of TM/CAM held in March 2015, Macao;
Ø  The 7th Meeting of Directors of WHO CCs for Traditional Medicine in June 2015, Italy;
Ø  International Forum on Traditional Medicine held in August 2015, Macao;
Ø  WGM in Acupuncture Practice held in October 2015, Guangzhou;
Ø  The 2nd WHO Interregional Training Workshop on Clinical Research in TM/CAM in November 2015, Macao;
Ø  WGM on Clinical Research in Traditional Medicine held in November, 2015 Macao.
Through communication and discussion in the workshops and conferences, information about the latest WHO policy framework as well as current and future priority activities of WHO in the field of traditional medicine has been updated, knowledge bases relating to TM/CAM evidence based clinical studies and Acupuncture practice have been enriched. The above-mentioned activity shall play an important role in disseminating the influence of WHO CC for Traditional Medicine.
 
Activity 4
Title: Enhance cooperation and exchange between countries in respect of TM
Description: The inherited information on traditional medicine practice and products from various countries is an important cultural resource to be treasured, which is still highly scattered at present. The activity intends to encourage cooperation and exchange for training, research and information to facilitate the harmonization of traditional medicine.
In the last year, the Center has received a total of 146 foreign visitors from 57 organizations in 25 countries and regions. Among those 146 foreign visitors, 10 of them are high-ranking government officials and university presidents. On the other hand, in the last year, NJUCM has sent totally 152 faculty members in 109 outbound groups to 27 countries and regions covering 4 continents. The frequent exchanged visits between different countries have been greatly conducive to the enhancement of cooperation and communication in TCM education and research worldwide.
 
2. Please briefly describe your collaboration with WHO in regards to the activities of the WHO collaborating centre during the past 12 months (e.g. means of communication, frequency of contact, visits to or from WHO). Please feel free to mention any difficulties encountered (if any) and to provide suggestions for increased or improved communication (if applicable).
Our institution assigned an expert to work in the State Administration of TCM (SATCM) for one year (from 2015 to 2016), contributing to the implementation of SATCM’s agreement with WHO on TCM as well as the facilitation of ICTM project in his role as the Division Director for multi-relations. During the session, he visited the WHO headquarters in Switzerland in October, 2015.
 
3. Please briefly describe any interactions or collaborations with other WHO collaborating centres in the context of the implementation of the above activities (if any). If you are part of a network of WHO collaborating centres, please also mention the name of the network, and describe any involvement in the network during the last 12 months.
WHO CCs for Traditional Medicine in China are mainly located in Beijing, Shanghai and Nanjing. The Center has been maintaining a close relation with other collaborative centers in Beijing and Shanghai by means of joint meeting for recent years. In the year 2015, our Center attended the above-mentioned meeting held in November, Beijing. Development of the centers under the new situation was discussed in the meeting. The joint meeting provides a communication platform to strengthen cooperation among CCs and improve the level of overseas Chinese medicine education.
 
4. Please briefly describe any type of technical, programmatic, advisory or other support received from WHO during the past 12 months for the implementation of the agreed activities listed above (if any).
Entrusted by the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies (WFCMS), which is the Grade A contact organization of WHO, our institution hosted the first International Academic Conference on TCM Preventative Treatment and organized the founding of TCM Preventative Treatment Specialty Committee of WFCMS in March 2016. The founding of TCM Preventative Treatment Specialty Committee and the hosting of the conference were supported by WHO.