Major King's-China health collaborations announced
King’s College London has announced major research and training collaborations with leading Chinese healthcare and medical education providers as part of a £2 billion package of agreements between China and the UK.
Worth upwards of £10 million, the agreements announced today at a ceremony at Mansion House have been highlighted by the UKTI as a central part of a package of healthcare collaborations being signed between the UK and China during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s State Visit to the UK.
The Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery will be working closely with Nanjing Jiangbei Public Work Centre and the Nanjing Education Bureau to upskill the city’s healthcare workforce and to establish the state-of-the-art Nanjing Nightingale Nursing School. Running for five years, the project will create opportunities consultancy, education and training as well as staff and student exchange between the UK and China.
In dentistry, King's Dental Institute has been chosen to work with Beijing's BYBO Dental Group, one of China's largest dental service providers, on a three year project to collaborate on clinical activities, staff exchanges, transfer of clinical expertise and protocols, and continuing education.
“This is a pivotal moment in our long relationship with China,” Dr Joanna Newman, Vice-Principal (International) at King’s College London, said. “These agreements demonstrate our reputation as world leaders in nursing and medical education and I am excited to see the positive impact working together will have, not only for the healthcare provision of the future, but also for our respective institutions.”
These agreements build on the success of King’s recent collaboration with Peking University Health Science Center (PUHSC). The two institutions, world leaders in medical education, have established a Joint Institute for Medical Research that will unlock research opportunities in cancer, cardiovascular care, dentistry and mental health. The collaboration has already provided training to over 60 UK and Chinese students through summer schools held in London and Beijing.
King’s strong links with China have also been recognised this week by the China-Britain Business Council (CBBC), which has appointed King’s College London President & Principal, Professor Ed Byrne AC to a new Advisory Council comprising 30 of Britain’s leading businesspeople with important China connections.