31 Oct - 20 Nov 2008

The College of Integrated Chinese Medicine is arranging a clinical study trip to China to study Chinese herbal medicine and/or acupuncture in collaboration with Guangdong Second Provincial Chinese Medicine Hospital.

This is a modern hospital with 420 beds and 20 clinical departments. On average it has more than 2,000 outpatients attending daily. All patients are treated according to TCM methodology.

What the trip offers

• Two weeks of clinical experience in one of China's most modern hospitals
• Guided clinical groups where you will have the opportunity to treat patients under the supervision of senior TCM doctors
• Inhouse lectures from the hospital staff that are clinically orientated, translated where required

This will be a clinically-based study trip suitable for qualified Chinese herbalists or acupuncture practitioners. In addition to the clinical studies, we will be arranging an interesting social programme that you may choose to accompany us on. There are many trips and tours available in Guangzhou and examples of these are described below:

• A guided tour around the city of Guangzhou
• A trip to nearby Hong Kong to take in the sights, restaurants and shopping
• A trip to the nearby mountains, a chance to escape from city life and spend some time walking in the forests, visiting temples or just taking it easy

November is an ideal time to visit this part of China with temperatures on average ranging from 68 to 75 degrees and relatively low rainfall.

Itinerary

31 October Depart London arriving in Hong Kong 1 November. We will travel by coach to our accommodation in Guangzhou.

Sunday 2 November can be spent acclimatising to your new surroundings or visiting the local area. In the evening there will be a reception arranged to meet the hospital staff.

Monday 3 November - Friday 7 November Hospital clinical and lectures

Weekend of 8 - 9 November On the Saturday we will be organising a trip out for anyone who wants to join us, or alternatively you can make your own arrangements.

Monday 10 November - Friday 14 November Hospital Clinical and Lectures

Saturday 15 November Certificate presentations, followed by a Chinese banquet to mark the end of the clinical training and say thank you to our hosts.

Sunday 16 - Monday 17 November We will be organising an excursion out of the city and into the mountainous area surrounding Guangzhou, departing Sunday, staying overnight and returning Monday.

Tuesday 18 November We will travel to Hong Kong, take in the sights, do some last-minute shopping and stay overnight in a hotel.

Wednesday 19 November Depart Hong Kong, arriving back in the UK on Thursday 20 November.

Accommodation

The accommodation is spacious and comfortable and is used by the hospital staff. Twin rooms are allocated within the price but single occupancy is available subject to payment of a single room supplement. The hospital provides a minibus service for travel to and from the hospital.

The hospital

The hospital is situated adjacent to Baiyun Mountain; there is a nearby lake in a scenic area that is frequented by both patients and doctors. The hospital grounds cover an area of 20,000 square metres and the hospital has a staff of 480 people. The hospital operates a knowledge transfer and expertise exchange programme with other state hospitals and the Universities of Guangzhou and Hong Kong. It has 420 beds within the 20 clinical departments and continues to expand annually. The daily average number of out patients is over 2,000 - all treated according to TCM methodology.

Our host is Dr Yao-Sheng Tu, Professor of Medicine. He is a medicine tutor in Guangdong Province, Director of the Institute of Chinese Medicine and doctoral tutor at the University of Hong Kong.

Hospital clinical

The hospital clinic day starts at 9 am for visiting students and lecture sessions are held from 3 pm to 5.30 pm. An experienced TCM doctor will be responsible for your supervision. Delegates are expected to always follow the doctor's supervision, which complies with the code of practice of medicine safety law in China. In the afternoon lecture sessions are arranged to discuss case histories of the patients seen during the morning's clinical. There will also be some lectures on areas of specialism within the hospital, e.g. oncology, or the treatment of stroke patients. The hospital reserves the right to make changes to the clinical programme as deemed necessary by the hospital administration.

A certificate will be issued upon satisfactory completion of the study programme.

Guangzhou basics

Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong province in southern China. Formerly known as Canton in the West, Guangzhou has been a gateway to China for foreign travellers for many centuries. Today Guangzhou is recognised as one of the most prosperous, liberal and cosmopolitan cities in China. Although a major city, Guangzhou boasts the largest urban park in China, the Shamian Dao; an island of refurbished colonial buildings, where it is possible to take a step back in time and escape the bustle of the city streets. Guangzhou is regarded as one of the best places to eat in China and is famous for its old, established restaurants and for the more adventurous there are countless eateries lining the back alleys offering a wide array of delights! The climate in Guangzhou is sub tropical, with the best weather found in October and November. The currency is the RMB or Chinese Yuan.

Fee for the trip

£1,790

The price includes Plane fares, travel connections by coach, accommodation, all clinical training and lectures, transfer to and from hospital, Interpreter fees, end of course Chinese banquet, overnight stay in Hong Kong

The following are not included Excursions, personal travel insurance (compulsory) and visa (compulsory), cost of other meals

Cancellations policy

If you cancel your trip

If you cancel your trip, you will need to notify the College of Integrated Chinese Medicine of this in writing. Since we may incur costs in cancelling your trip, you will have to pay the applicable cancellation charges, which could be up to 100%. If the reason for your cancellation is covered under the terms of your insurance policy, you may be able to reclaim these charges.

If we change or cancel your trip

It is unlikely that we will need to make any changes to the trip, but we do plan the arrangements many months in advance so occasionally we may need to make changes and we reserve the right to do so at any time. Most of these changes will be minor and we will advise you of them at the earliest possible date. We also reserve the right in any circumstances to cancel your trip, for example, if the minimum number of people required for the trip is not reached, we may have to cancel it, in which case, a full refund is applicable.

Important notes

• Please ensure that your passport has at least six (6) months validity from the date of your return to the United Kingdom
• Please give the same names on your application as are on your passport
• Airport taxes and surcharges are subject to change until final payment is made

How to apply

To secure your place on the trip please download and print out this pdf form, fill it in, sign it and post it to Silvia Hovancova, College of Integrated Chinese Medicine, 19 Castle Street, Reading RG1 7SB.

• Please enclose a cheque for the deposit of £500 (made out to the College of Integrated Chinese Medicine)
• On the form, please include full details including how we can contact you, your study and accommodation requirements, qualifications, previous study trips to China and your passport number

Please note that the balance of the fee for the trip must be paid by 1 August 2008.

Further information

If you have any queries, study trip coordinator Tony Booker will be happy to answer them. Please call 0118 950 8880 to arrange to speak to him, or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .