2024-03-22 06:51:00
By Xinhua | March 22, 2024 | 14:51
A pharmacist prepares traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) decoction at Sanya City Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital in Sanya, south China’s Hainan Province, Aug. 20, 2022. from China. (Xinhua Guo Cheng)
With the participation of prominent personalities, the II International Congress of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) began today Thursday at the Brasilia International Convention Center, which will take place from March 21 to 23 with the motto: “Integrating Prevention, Promotion and Sustainability in Health Systems”.
The event, in which the V Pan American TCM Congress and the I Latin American TCM Congress take place, is organized by the World Federation of Traditional Chinese Medicine (WFCMS), which has 286 members from 74 countries and regions, and consolidates its position as a leading international academic organization.
With the collaboration of the China-Brazil International Cooperation Base for Traditional Chinese Medicine and Cienlabor Industria, as well as the support of the Brazilian Academic Consortium of Integrative Health (Cabsin), the Congress seeks to promote the development of traditional Chinese medicine in the Americas .
Government officials, academics, businessmen and professionals from various fields related to the topic will participate in the Congress.
The event’s programming covers a wide range of topics, from basic and clinical research to cultural preservation and the role traditional Chinese medicine played in the fight against the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Fang Fang, director of the Sao Paulo Traditional Chinese Medicine Base and president of the Congress organizing committee, highlighted the contribution that traditional Chinese medicine can offer in Brazil.
“Holding such a TCM congress in Brasilia is of great importance both to promote TCM in Brazil and to offer another complementary option for public health. There is still no law that allows the use and practice of TCM in Brazil , but I think that TCM could bring many benefits to the Brazilian people,” he said.
For his part, Dr. Marcos Vinicius Soares Pedrosa, director of the Department of Comprehensive Care Management of the Brazilian Ministry of Health, highlighted that traditional Chinese medicine is widely accepted in his country, even in urban peripheries “more than you think”.
“The importance of traditional Chinese medicine for our Unified Health System is enormous. It is already offered in more than 85 percent of our municipalities and people are very satisfied with the service and it is contributing a lot to addressing the main health problems here in our country,” he said.
“It has great support from the population, who has been demanding the incorporation of this type of care into our health system for decades, and we have already achieved a significant extension of these practices both in hospitals and in primary care,” he added.
According to Soares Pedrosa, the average opinion of people is very positive towards practices such as acupuncture and body practices such as Lian-Kun and Tai-Chi that are already widespread.
He explained that although the use of traditional Chinese medicine is common in Brazil, there is still no law regulating this practice. A bill has been being discussed in Congress for more than two decades, with the expectation that it will be approved soon.
“I think it will be a great leap forward in this association, in this mutual cooperation between our countries, and that it will also extend with our support to the rest of the Latin American countries through the Pan American Health Organization,” he said.
Deputy Jorge Vianna, of the Legislative Assembly of the Federal District, a nurse by profession, highlighted the holistic approach of traditional Chinese medicine, complementary to Western medicine.
“Traditional Chinese medicine dates back thousands of years and has always been deeply rooted in the holistic understanding of the human body and the interconnection between mind, body and spirit. Building on this principle, over the centuries, practitioners of Chinese medicine China developed a vast set of therapeutic techniques, including acupuncture, herbal medicine, therapeutic massage and therapeutic exercises,” he noted.
Vianna noted that while Western medicine tends to focus on treating specific symptoms with pharmacological or surgical interventions, TCM offers a broader, more integrative perspective.
“In addition to that, traditional Chinese medicine often excels in disease prevention, emphasizing the importance of a healthy lifestyle, balanced diet and self-care practices, such as therapeutic exercises and meditation,” he said.
The deputy highlighted that among the countless fields of bilateral cooperation between China and Brazil, health is one of those that can benefit the most.
“Not only because of the cutting-edge science and high technology that China has produced, but also because of the use of the traditional knowledge of an ancient civilization,” he said.
Dr. Ramón Calduch, president of the European Foundation for Traditional Complementary and Integrative Medicine, said that choosing the most appropriate therapies for health care is a human right, and recalled that the World Health Organization (WHO) has prepared a series of reports to guarantee the application of traditional therapies.
Among those documents he mentioned the 2014-2023 Strategy, extended for one year, which made recommendations to all countries on the application of traditional medicine. A new strategy 2025-2034, he noted, must be discussed at the 77th WHO Assembly, to be held next May.
“In order not to violate people’s fundamental rights, it would be necessary for different countries to become aware of the importance of regulating these therapies both in their practice, in their learning, as well as in research, as recommended by the WHO,” Calduch pointed out.
These measures will ensure the protection of its citizens in terms of health, with good practices and truly informed health advice and from which people can decide how they want to take care of their health.
“In conclusion, freedom of therapeutic choice and the regulation of traditional complementary and integrative medicine by States are part of the rights of individuals in the field of international human rights law and as such must be guaranteed,” he emphasized.
(Web editor: Zhao Jian, Zhou Yu)
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