On 14 November 2020, at the ceremony of the 40th China (Liuzhou) International Assistive Products & International Welfare Machine Expo held in Liuzhou, Guangxi Province, a signing was held to mark the establishment of the School of Rehabilitation Assistive-products Training at the Open University of China (OUC).
The school is a joint construction of the OUC, the China Association of Assistive Products, and related enterprises; it is the first of its kind in China, and an innovative attempt to train practice-oriented and skilled professionals via non-degree education.
During the ceremony, speeches were given by Liu Muren, vice chair of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region; Yan Heping, chair of the China Association of Assistive Products; and Ju Chuanjin, OUC vice president, and member of the Party Committee. The ceremony was also attended by Wu Wei, mayor of the People’s Government of Liuzhou Municipality and deputy secretary of the CPC Liuzhou Municipal Committee; Hu Yang, director of OUC External Education; and Liu Weilin, chair of the China Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics.
The shortage of professionals trained in rehabilitation has seriously limited the development of related industries. According to recent editions of the China Health Statistics Year Book, China had only 36,100 rehabilitation physicians in 2018, or 1% of medical practitioners. There are only 3.6 rehabilitation physicians per 100,000 persons in China, well below the international standard of 50, as well as huge gaps in the nursing, management, and manufacturing sides of the rehabilitation industries.
The establishment of the OUC School of Rehabilitation Assistive Products Training will allow multiple stakeholders to collaborate in upgrading structure and services in the rehabilitation assistive products industry. The school will gather teams of experts and dual-qualification teachers from schools, associations and enterprises, set up professional training criteria and evaluation standards, and carry out non-degree training for managers and practitioners in the industry in order to cultivate their professionalism and entrepreneurship.
By OUC News Network, reprinted from China Youth Daily