2013-07-12

On 9 July, SUMC warmly welcomed a six-member delegation from the University of Toronto, headed by Dr. Catharine Whiteside, Dean of Medicine and Vice Provost for Relations with Health Care Institutions. On the following day, accompanied by Dean Junhui Bian and several senior representatives of SUMC, they visited the SUMC Clinical Skills Training Center, the Division of Critical Care Medicine, Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and Department of Pediatrics of the First Affiliated Hospital of SUMC, and the open, home-like setting for multi-modal treatment of the Shantou University Mental Health Center. The delegates were highly complimentary about SUMC's commitment to medical education, the emergency care services for critically ill patients and the humanistic concept on mental health care at the Mental Health Center, as well as the effective treatments for severe sepsis at the First Affiliated Hospital. Meanwhile, in-depth talks on possible collaborations were held between the two sides. They both have high expectations for their long-term partnership in the future.

Dean Catharine Whiteside is a clinician-scientist in nephrology. As Dean of Medicine and Vice Provost, she leads Canada's largest Faculty of Medicine and is responsible for the University's partnership with 9 fully affiliated hospitals and 18 community-affiliated hospitals and health facilities. Among the delegates, Dr. Arthur Slutsky is a leading clinician-scientist in critical care medicine, the recipient of the Recognition for Scientific Accomplishments Award from the American Thoracic Society. The University of Toronto and its affiliated hospitals have developed world-class expertise in such areas as critical care medicine, clinical research, telehealth, mental health care, community rehabilitation, competence-based teaching and learning, stimulation teaching and learning, and analysis of large data sets.

It is believed that the collaboration with the University of Toronto will be very helpful for SUMC and its affiliates to achieve continued progress in health care, medical education and clinical research.