China should wait no further to take "effective measures" to protect the centuries-old heritage of traditional Chinese medicine from "being blindly modernized", said a senior medical expert Wednesday afternoon.
Wang Xudong, a professor with the Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, made the remarks while addressing a full meeting of the Third Session of the 10th CPPCC (Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) National Committee.
Although several subjects such as acupuncture were booming in recent years, the traditional Chinese medicine as a whole failed to be "further developed and advanced", said Wang, a member of the CPPCC National Committee.
"Presently, the most urgent thing to do is to put the traditional iatric art under proper protection," said he.
Wang showed great concerns about the negative influences exerted by the trend of "modernizing the traditional Chinese medicine in the western way".
"It is ridiculous that a considerable number of traditional Chinese medics can conduct cellular, molecular and genic researches but are unable to prescribe by using Chinese herbs," noted Wang.
The medical expert also cited the lack of proper protection on the intellectual property rights of traditional Chinese medical prescriptions, techniques and experiences as a major blame for the currently "unsatisfactory" situation of the industry.
Statistics show that the world's annual trade of traditional Chinese medicine totals US$40 billion. China only accounts for 3 to 6 percent of the total, largely lagging behind the 80 percent scored by Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK), two obvious beneficiaries of the traditional Chinese medical roots.
The expert also referred to the "brain drain" in the industry as a chronical headache, characterized by a wave of traditional Chinese medics either seeking to practice abroad or switching to western medicine.
As one of China's most original academic disciplines, traditional Chinese medicine should be better guarded by a special national strategy and protected by laws and regulations, said Wang.
(Xinhua News Agency March 9, 2005)
