Traditional Chinese Medicine

First nationwide study on TCM to release in Nov

By Cheng Yingqi (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-08-03 08:08

BEIJING - China has completed its first nationwide study of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) as it is currently practiced and a report on the findings is expected in November.

"Surveys and data on TCM are insufficient. At present, we do not have comprehensive statistics that reflect the development and features of TCM," said Wang Guoqiang, director of the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

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The investigative phase of the project was completed on June 30 and the administration is currently preparing a report on the research for release in November, Wang said.

The research on TCM, which was inspired by its increasing popularity at home and abroad, addressed the number of practitioners who use it, the number of clinical departments where it is practiced and its applications, according to the administration.

In China, people are becoming more health conscious and want to learn how TCM can help them to maintain their health.

In the United States and Australia, some areas of TCM, such as acupuncture, are already widely used. Interest in TCM is so high that tens of thousands of overseas students come to China every year through NGOs to learn more about it, because there are no certified TCM centers in their own countries.

Tang Changdong, who is employed at the health bureau in Jining of East China's Shandong province, said that since there is no specific authority that administers TCM at the county level, grassroots services tend to be uneven.

Wang said TCM practitioners should stress the advantages TCM has to offer to provide people with better medical services.

Li Daning, deputy director of the department, suggested that certified classes on TCM should be added to the curricula in training centers throughout the world.

In North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, the research on TCM was China's first attempt since 1949 to inquire about the state of medicine in the region.