On the afternoon of January 6th, the Expert Symposium on the Development Plan for Ningbo University Health Science Center (2024-2035) was held in the Bihua Hall of Anzhong Building. The meeting was attended by 11 experts and scholars in the field of medical education, including Lin Huiqing, Chairman of the Medical Education Expert Committee under the Ministry of Education and former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Education; Zhan Qimin, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, former Executive Vice President of Peking University, and Dean of the Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University; Li Xiaokun, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of Wenzhou Medical University; Zhang Yurun, Party Secretary of Southern Medical University; Xiao Haipeng, Executive Vice President of Sun Yat-sen University; Chen Xiang, Executive Vice President of Central South University; Luo Jianhong, former Vice President of Zhejiang University; Wang Weimin, Deputy Director of Peking University Health Science Center and Executive Deputy Director of the National Center for Medical Education Development; Wang Ling, Dean of Keqing College at Fudan University; Shao Li, Director of the Academic Affairs Office at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine; and Yuan Quan, Director of the Talent Office at West China Hospital of Stomatology, Sichuan University, and Deputy Director of the National Key Laboratory of Oral Diseases.

Zhu Da, Party Secretary of Ningbo University, President Cai Ronggen, who is also an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Deputy Party Secretary Zhao Quanjun, Zhang Ruili, Deputy Director of the Organization Department of the Municipal Party Committee and Executive Deputy Director of the Municipal Talent Office, Yu Caoping, Director and Party Secretary of the Municipal Health Commission, Zhu Peinan, Deputy Director and Party Group Member of the Municipal Development and Reform Commission, Chen Jinhui, Deputy Director and Party Committee Member of the Municipal Education Bureau, as well as leaders from the Municipal Science and Technology Bureau and the Municipal Human Resources and Social Security Bureau were present. Cai Ronggen presided over the opening ceremony.

The expert panel, led by Lin Huiqing, affirmed the high level of attention that the Ningbo Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government have placed on medical development and the unconventional promotion of the innovative development of Ningbo University Health Science Center. She also expressed pleasure at the achievements made by Ningbo University in its "Double First-Class" initiative. She noted that Ningbo University and its Health Science Center had done extensive work in formulating the plan, seriously studying the advanced practices of benchmark institutions in China, and combining them with Ningbo's reality to highlight Ningbo's characteristics. The plan set reasonable phased targets and was scientifically sound and feasible. Ningbo University and its Health Science Center should seize this rare opportunity to achieve leapfrog development.

Zhu Da delivered a welcome speech, stating that the establishment and growth of Ningbo University Health Science Center was an important piece of Ningbo University's development puzzle. In less than thirty years, the Health Science Center has formed an integrated system of medical education, scientific research, clinical diagnosis and treatment, disease prevention, and health services. It now has five directly affiliated hospitals, five undergraduate majors including five-year clinical medicine programs, one first-level discipline doctoral program, three first-level discipline master's programs, and three professional degree master's programs. Disciplines such as clinical medicine, biology and biochemistry, and pharmacology and toxicology have successively entered the top 1% globally in the Essential Science Indicators (ESI) database. The development of medical disciplines is a new driving force for the construction of Ningbo University's "Double First-Class" initiative and a high-level university, and it is an important part of Ningbo University. The university is tightly grasping the significant opportunity presented by Ningbo's "Medical Peak" plan, making it a new growth point for the school's development. Therefore, during the planning process, the Health Science Center made relatively advanced plans for the level and scale of education to better respond to social needs and gather educational resources. It integrated the advantages of universities and affiliated hospitals to make rational planning and layout of disciplines and majors, better leading the development of medical services. Overall, the approval of the plan has significant guiding significance for the development of Ningbo University Health Science Center.

At the expert symposium, the head of the Health Science Center reported on the background and significance of drafting the plan, the main goals for the near, medium, and long term, as well as the six major enhancement actions and four major safeguard projects that accompany it. The experts engaged in enthusiastic discussion about the content of the plan and provided constructive suggestions.

The expert panel believed that the plan generally showed good foresight, scientific validity, and reasonableness. The development goals proposed in the plan not only meet current needs but also fully consider future trends and potential opportunities, as well as possible changes and challenges in the implementation process. The realization of the plan requires the Ningbo Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government to continue to increase resource investment and policy support, complete the construction of the dual bases of the Health Science Center, and establish a special "Medical Peak Plan" project to support the construction of large platforms, teams, and projects in medical disciplines. The panel suggested further refinement of the disciplinary development goals, streamlining the management system between the university, the Health Science Center, and the affiliated hospitals, strengthening talent team building, expanding the scale of doctoral student training, and enhancing the cultivation of top medical talents.

Cai Ronggen expressed gratitude on behalf of the university to all experts for their systematic analysis and targeted strategies for the development plan. He stated that it was necessary to mobilize enthusiasm from all parties, gather the strength of the entire university to build the Health Science Center, and promote it as a new driving force for the construction of Ningbo University's "Double First-Class" initiative and a high-level university. Focusing on building peaks in medical science and disciplines, a special task force for talent work will be established, a special policy for talent introduction will be set up, and actions will be accelerated to improve the quality and quantity of faculty teams, cultivate innovative teams, and integrate clinical teaching staff deeply. Investment will be increased to ensure the development of the Health Science Center, with solid efforts in the construction of "dual bases" and the layout of disciplines and majors. Adhering to the basic stance of rooting in Ningbo's land, meeting Ningbo's needs, and serving Ningbo's people, with clinical medicine as the main discipline, the full play of the disciplinary characteristics and advantages of the affiliated hospitals and the interdisciplinary advantages of Ningbo University's comprehensive university will be leveraged to achieve differentiated and characteristic development, effectively building the peak and high ground of Ningbo University's medical disciplines.

Yu Caoping, Director of the Ningbo Municipal Health Commission, expressed his gratitude on behalf of the commission, stating that they would continue to support the construction of Ningbo University Health Science Center with an "unconventional" work style and attitude. They will continuously improve and optimize the implementation plan and measures for the "Medical Peak" plan, create a batch of provincial regional medical centers with strong clinical diagnostic and treatment capabilities, scientific innovation abilities, and regional radiation capabilities to high standards; promote the second round of construction of Ningbo's municipal medical and health brand disciplines to high standards, forming a number of key disciplines with distinctive characteristics and significant influence within the province or even the country; implement high-level talent attraction and cultivation projects, introduce a batch of high-end medical teams and top talents from home and abroad, and promote the cross-leapfrog high-quality development of the city's medical and health services.

2023 marks the first year of active advancement of Ningbo University Health Science Center's "Medical Peak" plan, with multiple breakthroughs achieved. The institutional reform of the Health Science Center was completed, three clinical medical colleges were established, with the Basic Medical College, Public Health College, and Pharmaceutical College (in preparation) gradually becoming operational; the construction of the Health Science Center's "dual base" main base project started; high-level scientific research projects achieved breakthroughs, with one national key project, one provincial key project, one provincial key project approved, and 26.2 million yuan in research project funds in place; one overseas excellent young scientist was introduced; a first-level discipline doctoral post-doctoral research station for clinical medicine was approved; two new majors, dental medicine and pharmacy, as well as an innovative class for top clinical medical talents began enrollment; new first-level discipline master's programs in basic medical sciences, public health professional master's programs, and professional master's programs in pharmacy began enrollment; at the China International Undergraduate Innovation Competition (2023), three gold awards were won.