Aerospace Center Hospital celebrates 60th anniversary

A series of activities,including a three-day charity clinic, were recently carried out in Beijing to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Aerospace Center Hospital (ASCH).

Charity clinic and other events were also held at its branches in Jiuquan in Gansu province and Luoyang in Henan province.

The hospital was founded in 1958 for the national defense and space industries of China, in jiuquan, Gansu province in Northwest China, and later moved to Beijing in 1963.

The hospital has witnessed tremendous growth over the years, from one that only had tent-like wards and doctors practicing medicine on horsebacks into a modern regional medical center.

The hospital is known for its large-scale comprehensive establishments in healthcare, teaching and research. It covers an area of more than 100,000 square meters, with 1,050 beds and more than 2,000 staff members, including more than 200 experienced professional technicians, and 30 research supervisors for graduate students.

Through the years, the hospital has developed its technical advantages in interventional diagnosis and treatment, minimally invasive surgery, regenerative medicine, emergency and intensive care.

The hospital is also deeply involved in science and education, having participated in many national, provincial and ministerial scientific research projects. The hospital has undertaken the clinical teaching for Peking University for more than 20 years.

A summary meeting for the hospital's past development was held at its Beijing headquarters on Thursday.

The meeting was attended by high-level officials from the hospital, its supervising and partner organizations, as well as the local district government. The event was also joined by more than 200 representatives who are the hospital's current and former employees.

Du Jichen, director of the hospital, delivered a speech at the meeting and comprehensively summarized the hospital's achievements in various aspects, such as discipline construction and service innovation.

"In the future, we will constantly strive to improve our level of medical technology, deepen our scientific research work, optimize the hospital's scientific management, and expand our brand influence to become a first-class clinical school of medicine of Peking University," Du said.

Liu Shengguo, deputy chief of Haidian district, where the hospital is located, fully affirmed the hospital's contributions to the health cause of the district. Liu hoped that the hospital will deepen its reform on medicine and health to become a benchmark in the industry.

Hu Jun, head of the security department of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, a State-owned high-tech enterprise which the hospital is affiliated to, highly praised its contribution to the nation's aerospace industry and the general society over the past decades.

A documentary looking back at the hospital's history and achievement was played during the meeting.