NTHU and Hsinchu TVGH Join Hands for Cooperative Education

2022.12.15

In order to train a new generation of publicly funded physicians, National Tsing Hua University (NTHU) in Taiwan has recently entered into a cooperative arrangement with the Hsinchu Branch of the Taipei Veterans General Hospital (TVGH) for providing practicums for students in the Post-baccalaureate Program in Medicine (PPM). As part of the arrangement, the Hospital, which has long been dedicated to rural health care, has set up the NTHU Medical Office, which will be responsible for arranging practicums in community and rural medical services.

The signing ceremony was recently held at the Hospital, and the agreement was signed by Hospital superintendent Chen Tzeng-ji (陳曾基) and NTHU senior vice president Lyu Ping-chiang (呂平江), and witnessed by Lin Yung-yang (林永煬), vice superintendent of TVGH, and Chang Hui-yun (張惠紜), deputy director of the Hsinchu County Public Health Bureau. Also present at the ceremony were former Hospital superintendent Peng Giia-sheun (彭家勛), College of Life Science dean Kao Ruey-ho (高瑞和), Department of Medical Science director Chen Lin-yi (陳令儀), and PPM assistant director Chang Hwan-you (張晃猷).

Chen Tzeng-ji said that the Hospital is located in the Zhudong sub-medical area, including nine municipalities in Hsinchu County (Zhudong Town, Guanxi Town, Baoshan Township, Beipu Township, Emei Township, Xionglin Township, Hengshan Township, Jianshi Township, and Wufeng Township). Amongst these, Guanxi Township, Jianshi Township, and Wufeng Township are aboriginal areas; Hengshan Township, Xionglin Township, and Baoshan Township are among the ten areas with the lowest doctor-patient ratio in Taiwan; and Emei and Beipu Townships have only one clinic and two doctors. All of the medical services in the Zhudong sub-medical area are publicly funded.

Chen Tzeng-ji pointed out that the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH was established in 1957 as the Zhudong Veterans Hospital, and was given its present name in 2013. Among the 40 attending physicians of Western medicine at the hospital, 33 were publicly funded, and after completing the mandatory period working at government clinics, 25 of them have remained in rural areas to this day. These senior public physicians are highly qualified to mentor NTHU’s medical students.

The first batch of 23 PPM students began their studies in August. Lyu said that it’s not widely known that the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH, which is only 17 kilometers from NTHU, is the only hospital providing medical care in the back hills of Hsinchu, and that this is the same area where many PPM graduates will begin their careers. In addition to providing professional guidance, these outstanding doctors who have worked in these rural areas for a long time will serve as role models for students, helping them to realize the responsibility and value of government-sponsored doctors.

Lyu also said that NTHU and the TVGH have been cooperating in research and education for a long time. For example, the TVGH was a key partner in establishing the Boron Neutron Capture Therapy Center (BNCTC) at NTHU, which has become a global treatment center for malignant brain tumors and head and neck cancer. Also, the TVGH helped establish the BNCTC clinic at NTHU. The establishment of the NTHU Medical Office will facilitate further cooperation in research and education, especially in the area of smart medical care.

The Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH will conduct a course in community and rural medicine for PPM students during the upcoming winter vacation. The course includes a 16-hour practicum and will cover emergency medical care, long-term care at home for discharged patients, and community health, providing practical experience at clinics located in aboriginal villages and other remote areas. The wide variety of medical care provided at the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH will serve as an interactive textbook on rural medicine.

One of the instructors for the course will be Chen Hsuan-ta (陳炫達), the vice superintendent of TVGH Hsinchu Branch. He was a public-funded student, and after completing his mandatory period at a government clinic, he has continued working in a rural area for 22 years; he will be teaching the modules on surgery and urology.

In addition to cooperating with NTHU in education, the Hsinchu TVGH has long been using remote and artificial intelligence diagnostic tools, and is planning additional cooperation with NTHU in the research and development of smart medical care, including two for-credit classes in artificial intelligence. Moreover, the greatest demand for innovative technologies such as the Internet of Things is in rural areas, making the Hsinchu TVGH a highly suitable place for developing such technologies.

Despite the additional workload, the staff at the Hsinchu TVGH are enthusiastic about passing their knowledge on to the younger generation, since doing so will improve the quality of medical care in rural areas.

The PPM students are very much looking forward to the upcoming course in rural medicine, and have already prepared some questions to ask the doctors at the Hsinchu TVGH. Amongst the first batch of students is Lin Jui-ti (林睿緹), who is eager to gain some firsthand experience in rural medicine during the winter vacation and to learn more about the current situation of remote medical care.

TVGH vice superintendent Lin Yung-yang said that training public-funded doctors is really important, and that the Ministry of Health and Welfare has decided to send one-fifth of the public-funded doctors to veterans hospitals. What’s more, the partnership between NTHU and the Hsinchu TVGH brings together the best of technology and medical treatment.

Chang Hui-yun said that the government's policy on medical care in rural areas aims at the continuous provision of quality medical care in remote localities, which makes smart technology all the more important. Indeed, in light of NTHU’s strength in information and communications technology and the Hsinchu TVGH’s long-term experience in serving rural areas, their cooperative arrangement will surely go a long way in achieving this goal.

Kao Ruey-ho said that the first cohort of post-baccalaureate medical students enrolled in August of this year. The cohorts at other medical programs in Taiwan generally consist of both privately funded and publicly funded students, but at NTHU the PPM cohort consists entirely of students on government scholarships, making it possible to arrange courses more in line with the government policy regarding publicly funded medical students, and providing them with the best role models.

Peng Giia-sheun said that he has been deeply touched by the cooperation between NTHU and the Hsinchu TVGH, and that the results are bound to be fruitful.

NTHU has recently entered into a cooperative arrangement with the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH for providing practicums for students in the PPM. At the signing ceremony (left to right): Kao Ruey-ho (高瑞和), Chang Hui-yun (張惠紜), Lyu Ping-chiang (呂平江), Chen Tzeng-ji (陳曾基), Lin Yung-yang (林永煬), and Peng Giia-sheun (彭家勛).

Lyu Ping-chiang (left) and Chen Tzeng-ji attaching the Chinese characters to the sign board of the newly established NTHU Medical Office.

Lyu said that the Hsinchu TVGH is an excellent place for PPM graduates to begin their careers.

Chen Tzeng-ji said that among the 40 physicians of Western medicine at the Hsinchu TVGH, 25 have remained in rural areas.

Kao Ruey-ho said that the doctors at the Hsinchu TVGH make excellent role models for PPM students.

Lin Yung-yang said that training public-funded doctors is really important, and that the Ministry of Health and Welfare has decided to send one-fifth of public-funded doctors to veterans hospitals.

Chang Hui-yun said that the government's policy on medical care in rural areas aims at the continuous provision of quality medical care in remote localities, which makes smart technology all the more important.

Peng Giia-sheun said that he has been deeply touched by the cooperation between NTHU and the Hsinchu TVGH, and that the results are bound to be fruitful.

NTHU has recently entered into a cooperative arrangement with the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH for providing practicums for students in the PPM.

The NTHU Medical Office has recently been opened at the Hsinchu Branch of the TVGH.

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