Comparison of traditional Chinese medicine education between China's mainland and Australia —a case study

OBJECTIVE: To analyze and compare the curriculum and delivery of a Chinese and Australian university-level Chinese medicine program. METHODS: A review of Pub Med and the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure for relevant educational papers was undertaken. Online and paper documents available at the University of Technology Sydney(UTS) and the Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine(CDUTCM) were read and analyzed. In addition, in-depth interviews with academics from the two universities were conducted during 2014 to 2015. RESULTS: The two Chinese medicine programs share the common goal of providing health services to the local community, but differ in some aspects when the curricula are compared. Areas such as student profile, curriculum structure, teaching approaches and education quality assurance were found to be different. The UTS program adopts a "flipped learning" approach with the use of educational technology aiming at improving learning outcomes. On the other hand, the CDUTCM has better clinical facilities and specialist physician resources. CONCLUSION: A better understanding of the different curricula and approaches to Chinese medicine education will facilitate student learning and educational outcomes.