Universities and China CDC launch innovative programs to train more public health professionals

Led and approved by the Ministry of Education and the National Health Commission, 11 institutions have launched innovative programs to train more public health professionals: Peking University, Jilin University, Harbin Medical University, Fudan University, Nanjing Medical University, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Central South University, Sun Yat-sen University, Sichuan University, Xi’an Jiaotong University, and the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC). An inaugural meeting was held in Beijing on December 3.

On the meeting it was underscored that these programs were essential to increasing the number of high-caliber, multi-skilled health professionals and for supporting national health strategies. It was stressed that the relevant institutions should explore innovative practices for post-graduate and doctoral level public health education and on-the-job training. In the future, professional master degree programs would become the mainstay of master-level public health education.

Also, the 11 institutions planned to sign cooperative agreements with provincial-level government healthcare agencies or local disease control and prevention centers, with an aim to promote collaboration between healthcare and education institutions, and create successful and replicable models for the whole healthcare sector.