China agreement signed

A visit last week by several Chinese medical practitioners to Grand Valley State University marked the start of a formal exchange agreement between the university and a hospital in Beijing.

Doctors and professors from the China-Japan Friendship Hospital were in Grand Rapids on November 22 and 23. Along with a tour of campus and visit with GVSU health professions faculty members, the Chinese delegation toured the Van Andel Institute, Mary Free Bed Hospital and Rehabilitation Center, and the Wege Institute.

Jane Toot, director of GVSU's School of Health Professions, organized the trip after two visits to the Friendship Hospital. The 1,300-bed facility integrates traditional Chinese medicine (herbs, acupuncture) with modern western medicine.

'The Chinese health system is oriented more toward preventative medicine, with the use of herbs, while still valuing western medicine: radiation, surgery,' Toot said. 'The Chinese are very open to integration.'

Following this visit, a group of GVSU upper-level students who are preparing for the health professions program will travel to Beijing for three weeks in June to study traditional Chinese practices and the country's health system.