Think Tanks Empower Health Cooperation: The Legacy of Qihuang Illuminates the SCO — Professor Dong Jingcheng, Senior Advisor to the Platform Think Tank, Advances the Building of the SCO Health Community through the Integration of Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine

Shanghai Cooperation Organization Time  

The Multifunctional Economic and Trade Platform of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has consistently upheld the “Shanghai Spirit,” leveraging cooperation across multiple domains—including economy and trade, culture and humanities, education, healthcare, and science and technology—to foster people-to-people bonds and practical collaboration among SCO member states. As a senior think-tank advisor to the platform, Professor Dong Jingcheng, a National Qihuang Scholar and Director of the Institute of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine at Fudan University, has long been deeply engaged in the innovation of integrated TCM–Western medicine and ethnic medicines. Through academic leadership, medical assistance, talent development, and the translation of research into practice, he has seamlessly integrated cutting-edge medical resources with regional coordinated development under the SCO framework, thereby kindling the flame of Qihuang wisdom in the building of an SCO health community.

In 2025, Professor Dong Jingcheng and his team achieved remarkable scientific accomplishments, winning numerous national- and provincial/ministerial-level research awards, undertaking major projects such as the National Key R&D Program and the National Natural Science Foundation, and steadily enhancing the international impact of their high-level academic publications. He also spearheaded the establishment of the Institute of Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology, and Rhinology, thereby advancing the refinement of an integrated Chinese–Western medicine disciplinary system. Furthermore, he has actively implemented the principles of medical assistance to Xinjiang and talent-driven development in the region, dedicating 13 years to working tirelessly in frontier areas to bring high-quality medical resources closer to local communities, thus bolstering healthcare standards in ethnic minority regions and promoting ethnic unity and progress.

In March 2026, Professor Dong Jingcheng undertook intensive medical collaboration in border regions: he inaugurated expert workstations at the Kunlun People’s Hospital in Caohu, Xinjiang; the Kashgar Municipal People’s Hospital; and the Second People’s Hospital of the Kashgar Prefecture, where he was appointed honorary president. He delivered academic lectures, conducted teaching rounds, and provided free public health clinics. He also visited the Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Hospital in Karamay City to guide the establishment of a high-level talent studio, further advancing the implementation of the time-and-space–based public welfare healthcare project for chronic diseases, and building an integrated collaborative platform for clinical practice, research, and education. These efforts enable residents in border areas to access national-level integrated TCM–Western medicine services close to home, while fostering a pool of locally trained medical professionals who are both retained and effectively utilized.

As a medical expert and think-tank scholar on the SCO platform, Professor Dong Jingcheng actively participates in international exchanges such as the SCO Forum on Traditional Medicine, promoting the integrated innovation of traditional Chinese medicine and Western medicine as well as the convergence of ethnic medicines with modern medicine, thereby building a bridge for mutual learning and cooperation in traditional medicine among SCO member states. The achievements of his team, including an AI-powered outpatient oncology management system and evidence-based research on classic Uyghur medicinal formulas, have provided Chinese solutions and Fudan expertise to support public health prevention and control, chronic disease management, and the diagnosis and treatment of complex and difficult-to-treat conditions in SCO member states.

In recent years, the Multifunctional Economic and Trade Platform of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization has put into practice the strategic consensus reached by the heads of state of SCO member states on strengthening international cooperation in the fields of medicine and health. To this end, it has initiated and established four working committees covering traditional medicine, precision medicine, public health, and other related areas, and has appointed leading domestic and international medical experts—including National Master of Traditional Chinese Medicine and People’s Hero Academician Zhang Boli, as well as National Qihuang Scholar and Director of the Institute of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine at Fudan University Professor Dong Jingcheng—as lifetime honorary chairpersons or think tank advisors to the platform. By fostering deep integration across the entire value chain—medical practice, education, research, industry, and application—the platform has pooled industry expertise, broken down disciplinary silos, and taken concrete steps to advance high-level exchanges and international cooperation in the medical field among SCO member states. Looking ahead, the Multifunctional Economic and Trade Platform of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization will continue to leverage its strengths in think-tank leadership and resource integration to further deepen cooperation among SCO member states in such areas as the inheritance and innovation of traditional medicine, joint training of medical professionals, collaborative governance of public health, and the translation of pharmaceutical research into industrial applications. Through health connectivity, the platform aims to foster people-to-people bonds; through medical cooperation, it seeks to empower regional development; and through these efforts, it will make a solid contribution to building a closer SCO community with a shared future.