Hong Kong. The 2,000-year-old practice is attracting a new
wave of doctors, and they're not just from China.
A Chinese tradition, now with a global following.
Marcus Gadau, from Germany, travelled all the way to Hong Kong, not as a tourist, but to learn an ancient Chinese tradition.
Marcus Gadau, from Germany, travelled all the way to Hong Kong, not as a tourist, but to learn an ancient Chinese tradition.
"When I was 16, I was treated with Chinese medicine,then I went to Beijing to study Chinese medicine." Marcus Gadau said.
After five years studying in Beijing, Marcus is enrolled in the PhD program of the school of Chinese Medicine at Hong Kong Baptist University.
He says many western people have misconceptions about Chinese medicine. But after a lot of experiments and seeing how it works on his own body, he's been fascinated by the power of Chinese medicine.
He even kindly felt my pulse, and immediately announced I have had back pain for a long time. After some long pressure on my arm, I was surprised to be feeling better.
He said through a course of acupuncture, my back can fully recover. This is the first time I have been treated by a Chinese medicine practitioner with a western face.
One of his goals is to set up his own clinic back in Germany, specializing in acupuncture. A new generation is
continuing the ancient Chinese tradition here and abroad.
There's a surge in the number of university students in Hong Kong choosing to study traditional Chinese medicine rather than western medicine.
According to the government, registered practitioners of Chinese medicine account for a third of all doctors in the city.
Long shunned in favor of its western counterparts, traditional Chinese
medicine is having a resurgence in Hong Kong. The 2,000-year-old practice is attracting a new wave of doctors, and they're not just from China.
67,000 patients went to traditional Chinese doctors in 2004. Thirteen times as many were treated in 2012.
Driven by a greater common knowledge on the old Chinese tradition, and with a rising number of young doctors both at home and overseas, clinics have flourished
in Hong Kong. But traditional Chinese medicine still lives in the shadow of western medicine.
Traditional doctors earn half as much as their western medicine counterparts.And while public teaching hospitals for traditional Chinese medicine are common on the
mainland, there still aren't any in Hong Kong.
"Western medicine still in dominant position. Policy and funding are decided by those people in dominant
positions…in HK, we don't have enough funding research…the key obstacle should be emphasized by the government policy…"said Lu Aiping, dean of School of Chinese Meds, HK Baptist University.
Chinese medicine in Hong Kong still lacks the resources to catch up with western medicine. But with rising public demand and a growing number of young doctors, the Chinese tradition will be carried on in the years to come.
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