Comrade Cui Yueli on Chinese Medicine
During Comrade Cui Yueli's years directing the Ministry of Health, and in the years between his retirement and his death, he worked to implement the Party and the state's Chinese-medicine policy. Drawing on the realities on the ground, he put forward a number of correct understandings and assessments of Chinese-medicine learning, and adopted a set of corresponding measures to develop its scholarship and its enterprise. Under his work, Chinese medicine made significant advance.
He said:
"Clinical practice, teaching, and research in Chinese medicine must foreground the distinctive features of Chinese medicine and bring its strengths fully into play."
"To develop Chinese medicine, we must seize two main issues. The first: resolutely implement the Party's Chinese-medicine policy. The second: Chinese-medicine institutions must preserve and develop the distinctive features of Chinese medicine — that is, in the full range of diagnosis, treatment, emergency care, nursing, nutrition, case-note writing, ward management, we must restore and advance the character of Chinese medicine and Chinese herbs."
"I approve of Chinese-and-Western integration, but I do not approve of the Westernization of Chinese medicine. Three concepts must be kept clear: developing Chinese medicine; developing Chinese-and-Western integration; developing Western medicine. We cannot allow 'Chinese-and-Western integration' to replace the development of Chinese medicine — this is a question of principle."
"The apprentice-master method of teaching Chinese medicine is not a short-term, expedient measure. It must be planned for the long term."
"Prevention is always better than treatment after the fact. No matter what disease it is, not contracting it at all is better than contracting it. In China's case this is especially important."
"For Western doctors studying Chinese medicine — and among Chinese-medicine doctors, Western-medicine doctors, and those who are studying both — solidarity must be strengthened; together we must run the enterprise well; together we must carry forward Chinese medicine and Chinese herbs and work for the health of the people. We should advocate learning from each other, helping each other, driving each other forward — not pulling down each other's stages, not looking down on each other, discriminating, or excluding. We should identify the good models of Chinese-and-Western solidarity and praise them, encourage them."
"Chinese medicine is needed not only by the broad masses of the Chinese people but by the people of the world. In recent years some Western countries have also seen a wave of interest in Chinese medicine. That adds further weight to the responsibilities of our Chinese-medicine workers."