China Initiative Team Visit to PKUHSC and COTA Conference in China
May 26, 2024

This May, the China Initiative team, represented by Dr. Elena Meng and OTD resident Sally Wong, made their first trip back to China since the COVID-19 pandemic hiatus. Over two days, they met with our long-time collaborators and visited the Peking University Health Science Center (PKUHSC) campus and affiliated hospitals. It was exciting for both teams to meet again, shortly after the American Occupational Therapy (AOTA) Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida in March.

The China Initiative team had a full agenda consisting of meetings and site visits arranged by PKUHSC. The team attended a breakfast meeting with the PKUHSC administrative team from the Rehabilitation Medicine department, clinical leadership members from Peking University Third Hospital and Peking University Sixth Hospital, PKUHSC instructors, and selected USC-PKUHSC dual-degree graduates who are working at affiliated hospitals. The meeting began with remarks from Prof. Guoqing Cui, Director of the Rehabilitation Medicine department at Peking University Third Hospital and Associate Director of the Rehabilitation Medicine department at PKUHSC; Prof. Yueqin Huang, Director of the National Clinical Research Center for Psychiatric and Mental Disorders and Associate Director of the Rehabilitation Medicine department at PKUHSC; and Jian Wang, Associate Director of the Party Committee at Peking University Third Hospital of the PKUHSC administrative team. Dr. Elena Meng gave a presentation on the newly launched Entry-Level Doctorate of Occupational Therapy (OTD) program offered at USC Chan. Both teams recognized the success of the USC-PKUHSC partnership and are looking forward to future collaboration opportunities to continue supporting the improvement of occupational therapy education and practice in China.

After the breakfast meeting, the China Initiative team toured the outpatient pediatric rehabilitation and inpatient sleep medicine facilities at the Peking University Sixth Hospital, which specializes in mental health. Dual-degree graduate, Dr. Ruisheng Yun (Cohort 1), also shared her work as an occupational therapist at the hospital, outpatient, and community settings to increase public awareness and reduce stigmas related to mental illness in China.

The China Initiative team then toured the inpatient and outpatient adult rehabilitation gyms and occupational therapy office at the Peking University Third Hospital Main Campus. PKUHSC instructor, Dr. Liguo Qian, introduced objects that therapists had creatively and culturally adapted to meet the daily occupational needs of Chinese population, including a dynamic table tennis ball stand for gross motor training, a full set of mahjong, and a variety of simulated food textures to pick up with chopsticks for fine motor practice.

On the way to lunch, two of the dual-degree graduates, Dr. Luming Yang (Cohort 1) and Dr. Yongshi Wang (Cohort 2), led a short tour of the PKUHSC campus. During lunch, the China Initiative community, joined by a PKUHSC instructor, dual-degree graduates, and a PhD graduate, Dr. Buwen Yao, exchanged post-graduation and career updates and shared an enjoyable reunion time.

After lunch, the China Initiative team met with Dr. Yanyan Yang, Associate Director of the Rehabilitation Medicine department at Peking University Third Hospital, and PKUHSC instructor, Dr. Hui (Angela) Wang, to tour the inpatient rehabilitation ward and gym at the Peking University Third Hospital Satellite Campus which primarily serves veterans and retired government officials. The team learned that Dr. Wang established the rehabilitation department from the ground up less than a year ago and now serves as the Department Head. The team’s first day in Beijing concluded with a reunion dinner with all three PKUHSC instructors and some dual-degree graduates.

On the second day, the China Initiative team began with a tour of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine where occupational therapy and physical therapy services are provided at the Peking University First Hospital Main Campus. Together with the PKUHSC instructor, Dr. Yijun (Jane) Liu, the team traveled to the newly opened Peking University First Hospital Daxing Campus by shuttle. Dr. Elena Meng delivered a presentation to therapists and other rehabilitation professionals titled “Brief Introduction of Sensory Processing and Sensory Integration”. Attendees expressed interest in furthering their knowledge in sensory integration and applying the approach to children with neurodevelopmental conditions. The team observed an intervention session to improve behavioral issues and social skills led by a pediatric occupational therapist from Peking University First Hospital Daxing Campus. A tour of the pediatric rehabilitation facility by Dr. Cui Wang concluded this site visit as well as the team’s stay in Beijing.

Following their visit in Beijing, the China Initiative team attended the 2024 China Occupational Therapy Association (COTA) Conference in Weifang, Shandong Province from May 23rd to May 26th, 2024. The first two days consisted of pre-conference workshops on topics such as pediatric assessment and intervention, burn rehabilitation, occupational therapy education, and evidence-based practice. Conference organizers also hosted various competitions to increase student and practitioner involvement in increasing public awareness of the profession. Our dual-degree graduate from the first cohort, Dr. Zhizhuo Wang, now an instructor at the Fujian Medical University, led a group of students to participate in the 4th Occupational Therapy Innovation and Entrepreneurship Competition and the 4th Occupational Therapy Popular Science Competition to showcase their creativity and innovation.

On the morning of the third day, the conference officially began with a presentation on “The International Development Trend of Occupational Therapy” by Samantha Shaan, the president of the World Federation of Occupational Therapy (WFOT). Speakers from local and international backgrounds shared their expertises in the main forum as well as sub-forums on neurorehabilitation, hand therapy, artificial intelligence (AI), and many other special interest topics.

In the afternoon, the China Initiative team was invited to share their expertise at the International Occupational Therapy Educational Symposium, which gathered academicians around the globe including Australia, Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea. China Initiative Director, Dr. Julie McLaughlin Gray, who was not able to join the trip, delivered a virtual presentation titled “Standards and Evaluation of American Occupational Therapy Programs”, discussing program standards and evaluations, curriculum design, evidence-based approaches to practice of teaching, and continuous quality improvement in US contexts. In Dr. Elena Meng’s presentation “USC-PKUHSC Dual-Degree Program: 8 Years of Cross-Cultural Partnership”, she shared a brief history of the China Initiative, process and outcomes of the dual-degree program, residency formats at USC, and recommendations for cross-cultural partnerships.

The conference gathered clinical experts and academic leaders locally and internationally. The China Initiative team had another opportunity to reunite with PKUHSC guest instructor and past China Initiative resident, Dr. Ruiying (Lily) Xu, past China Initiative resident, Dr. Yawei (Olivia) Li, and dual-degree graduates, Dr. Zhizhuo Wang (Cohort 1) and Dr. Hongying Zhong (Cohort 2). This was the team’s first visit to PKUHSC and COTA after our first two cohorts of dual-degree graduates returned to China to apply their knowledge and skills as occupational therapists and educators in various practice settings and sociocultural contexts. The team was excited by the achievements of graduates and will continue to support the China Initiative community in promoting clinical, academic, and research advancements of occupational therapy in China.

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