Traditional Tibetan Medicine Elective, Qinghai (Amdo),
China

Introduction:
Recently, traditional Tibetan Medicine, with its nearly 4000
years of history and practice, has gained increasing attention and acceptance
worldwide. Previously, there were no official medical electives for students
to study traditional Tibetan medicine in China. The collaboration between the
Qinghai University Tibetan Medical College in Xining (Siling, Amdo), and
Stanford Medical School is the first of its kind for both institutions. The
first cohort of students participated in the 4-week rotation in the summer of
2007.

Tibetan Medicine
Hospital, Xining (Siling, Amdo)
Program Goals for Students:
- See patients with experienced
preceptors while learning the basic theories of traditional Tibetan medicine in
a seminar setting
- Learn about the changing
interactions between traditional Tibetan medicine and western biomedicine
- Learn about the public health
situation in ethnically Tibetan regions and what the community is doing to make
improvements
- Learn about the Chinese
national health care system

Thangka depicting
medical plants
Program Includes (click here for PDF of 2007 course schedule):
- A four week rotation at the Qinghai University
Tibetan Medical College and its affiliated hospital, in Xining (Siling, Amdo),
PRC
- 10 hours a week of seminars to introduce traditional Tibetan
Medicine (history, theory, diagnosis, treatment). Classes are taught by the
medical colleges most senior professors
- 10 hours a week of clinical exposure in outpatient and inpatient
settings
- 5 hours a week of language training in conversational Chinese or
Tibetan
- Weekly lunches with in country director who is trained in both
Tibetan and biomedicine
- Weekly informal meetings with NGO (non-governmental organizations
such as Trace Foundation, Bridge Fund, Shem Group) representatives involved in
public health projects in ethnically Tibetan regions such as Qinghai (Amdo)
- Weekly trips within the city to sites such as the pharmaceutical
factory where traditional Tibetan medicines are made, and to the Tibetan
Medicine Museum
- Weekend trips outside of Xining (Siling, Amdo) for medicinal
plant collection, visiting nomadic villages and rural clinics, and site-seeing
trips to Qinghai Lake and Kumbum Monastery
- Interpretation into English during all elective related
educational activities
- (Optional) -- Upon successful completion of the rotation, 6
quarter units of academic credit from Stanford Medical School will be awarded
Sample
Schedule for One Week
Time |
Monday |
Tuesday |
Wednesday |
Thursday |
Friday |
8:30am |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
9:30am |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
Outpatient Clinic or
Inpatient Wards |
11am |
Chinese/Tibetan Lessons |
Chinese/Tibetan Lessons |
Chinese/Tibetan Lessons |
Chinese/Tibetan Lessons |
Chinese/Tibetan Lessons |
12pm |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Lunch |
1pm |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Lunch |
Planned Trip (ex. Medicine
Factory, Plant Collection, rural clinics, etc.) |
2:30pm |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Planned Trip |
3:30pm |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Seminar on TM Theory |
Planned Trip |

Medicinal plant
collection area
Program Costs:
- The program fee for 2007 was $800 US dollars, but is subject to
change in 2008
- The program fee will cover the following:
- Facilities usage
- Language classes
- Tibetan Medicine classes
- Clinical experience
- English interpretation
- Administrative costs
- Field site visits in and around Xining (Siling, Amdo)
- Other costs for which students will be responsible include:
- Visa fee
- Medical and evacuation insurance
- Airfare to and from Xining, Qinghai Province (in the People’s
Republic of China)
- Housing
- Meals
- Local transportation
- Personal expenses, incidentals
- We estimate that the total cost for the month-long rotation will
be between $1500 - $2500 NOT including the program fee (the major
determining factor will be airfare)

Medicine Factory of
the Arura Group
Program Timing:
- The 2007 elective was held between July 30th and
August 24th
- Only one elective will be offered for 2008
- We expect the 2008 elective will be offered mid-June to mid-July
- Only 5-10 students will be accepted due to logistical limitations
Student Qualifications:
- Students must have completed their first year of medical school
in the US before they arrive in Xining (Siling, Amdo)
- Students who speak Tibetan or Mandarin Chinese are encouraged to
apply, but only knowledge of English is required for the elective
Accommodations:
- Students are encouraged to stay in the hotel/dorm provided by the
hospital which is conveniently located on the hospital campus
- The current price per person per night is 60 RMB (~8 USD 2007
exchange rate)
- Rooms have bathrooms and hot water (see below for pictures)
- Alternatively, there are other hotels and hostels in Xining
(Siling, Amdo) that range from 100 RMB to 300 RMB per room per night
Applications:
- Applications will be made available for download in December,
2008
- If you are interested and want to be contacted when applications
will be accepted, please send an e-mail to phuoc@alum.dartmouth.org
Contact Information:
- The program will be administered by the Center for Education in
Family and Community Medicine at Stanford Medical School
- For more information please contact Phuoc Le, MD, MPH at phuoc@alum.dartmouth.org
- Our in country site director is Dr. Renchen Dhondrup (rqdd@yahoo.com), who is trained in both
Tibetan medicine and Western biomedicine
- Contact Address:
- Center for
Education in Family and Community Medicine
1215 Welch Road,
Modular G
Palo Alto,
CA 94305
(650)
725-5339
Additional Pictures:

Display of herbs and minerals

Herb collection field trip

Hotel at the Tibetan Medicine Hospital

Typical
hotel/dorm room

Tibetan Medicine Research division

Typical
afternoon in hospital

Outpatient Clinics

With
patients

Seminar with Professor Li Samjia on Tibetan medical history

Herb
collection with Tibetan teachers and colleagues

Dinner with students and Tibetan colleagues
Feedback from 2007 Participants:
“I enjoyed being in Xining so
much, and I really thought it was a great, supportive learning environment.
Everyone was really friendly and I feel as though I made friendships that will
span my lifetime. I really enjoyed learning about the Tibetan epistemology of
medicine, their framework of diseases and the cultural context in which they
function. It is a beautiful culture, place and people and I would not hesitate
to come back and work with the NGOs in the near future!”
“It was a privilege to be a
part of the rotation. I hope other students are able to experience the beauty
of Tibetan culture.”
Last Updated November
7, 2007