Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University

I. Long History

Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University, is a hospital directly under the National Health Commission. Founded in 1835, it is the first Western medicine hospital in China and the cradle of Western medicine and medical education in China, with a history of 190 years. The great revolutionary forerunner, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, studied medicine and engaged in revolutionary activities here under the name "Yixian". The hospital has achieved numerous firsts in the history of Western medicine in China, such as the first eye surgery, ovariectomy, cystolithotomy, ether anesthesia, pathological autopsy, the first X-ray film, the first Chinese medical journal, the first Western medical school, and the first Chinese medical student studying abroad. After liberation, a group of nationally renowned medical scientists and educators, such as Lin Shumo, Chen Yaozhen, Xie Zhiguang, Zhong Shifan, Qin Guangyu, Chen Xintao, Zhou Shoukai, Mao Wenshu, and Chen Guozhen, devoted themselves here, cultivating a large number of medical talents, making it a cradle for Western medicine talents in China and making tremendous contributions to China's medical事业.

II. Flourishing Development

With a century-old heritage, the hospital has developed into a large-scale comprehensive Grade III Level A hospital integrating medical care, teaching, research, and preventive healthcare. Currently, the hospital has four campuses and one outpatient department, including: North Campus, South Campus, Huadu Campus, Shenshan Campus (Shenshan Central Hospital), and South Campus Outpatient Department. Haizhu Bay Campus is under construction.

The hospital currently has over 5,700 employees, including 261 with senior professional titles and 503 with associate senior titles; 187 doctoral supervisors and 404 master's supervisors; 17 individuals serving as chair or vice-chair of major national societies and associations such as the Chinese Medical Association, Chinese Medical Doctor Association, and Chinese Anti-Cancer Association, and 174 individuals serving as chair or vice-chair of major provincial societies and associations such as Guangdong Medical Association, Guangdong Medical Doctor Association, and Guangdong Anti-Cancer Association.

(1) Steady Development of Medical Work

In recent years, the hospital's medical business volume has continued to grow, and medical work efficiency has steadily improved. The hospital has 3,013 authorized beds, an annual total diagnosis and treatment volume of over 3.88 million visits, an annual surgical volume of over 150,000 cases, and an annual discharged patient volume of over 202,000.

The hospital has 7 national key disciplines: Internal Medicine (Nephrology, Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases), Surgery (General Surgery), Neurology, Oncology, Otorhinolaryngology, and Ophthalmology.

17 specialties are national key clinical specialties: Endocrinology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Endemic Diseases (Pediatric Hematology), General Surgery, Urology, Emergency Medicine, Oncology, Gynecology, Orthopedics, Cardiovascular Medicine, Otorhinolaryngology, Neurology, Organ Transplantation, Medical Imaging, Rehabilitation Medicine, Pediatrics, and Dermatology.

29 specialties are provincial key clinical specialties in Guangdong: Oncology, Cardiovascular Medicine, Respiratory Medicine, Endocrinology, Gastroenterology, Nephrology, Urology, General Surgery, Orthopedics, Gynecology, Obstetrics, Pediatrics, Stomatology, Otorhinolaryngology, Neurology, Rehabilitation, Emergency Medicine, Critical Care Medicine, Anesthesiology, Dermatology, Medical Imaging, Cardiovascular Surgery, Organ Transplantation, Geriatrics, Ophthalmology, Pathology, Hematology, Neurosurgery, and Neonatology.

The hospital has been selected as one of the second batch of key construction hospitals of Guangdong High-level Hospitals, and has been included in the National Project for Improving the Diagnosis and Treatment Capacity of Difficult and Complex Diseases in Oncology. It also possesses the qualification for transplantation of four major organs: heart, lung, liver, and kidney. It has established a Precision Oncology Treatment Center and a Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Consultation Center (including MDT Consultation Center, Complex Disease Consultation Center, and Telemedicine Consultation Center), fully demonstrating the strong capabilities of its clinical specialties.

(2) Continuous Breakthroughs in Research and Discipline Construction

As a high-level hospital in Guangdong Province, with the goal of building a "world-class research hospital with Chinese characteristics", the hospital has significantly improved its academic strength in recent years. In 2020, it entered the global top 100 research hospitals, and it has ranked among the top 10 in the "Nature Index" in China for four consecutive years.

Focusing on discipline construction and leveraging major platforms, teams, and projects, the hospital is an important component of Sun Yat-sen University's "Clinical Medicine" first-class discipline. It currently houses the "Long Non-coding RNA and Major Diseases" demonstration international cooperation base, the national major new drug creation project "Targeted Tumor and Its Microenvironment Innovative Drug Clinical Research and Evaluation Technology Platform", and has been included in the National Project for Improving Diagnosis and Treatment of Difficult Diseases, the National Healthy Medical Big Data Collaborative Diagnosis and Treatment Innovation System Construction, and the "Guangdong High-Level Hospital" key construction hospital. It also owns 28 provincial, ministerial, and bureau-level platforms, including the Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Epigenetics and Gene Regulation in Malignant Tumors. The hospital aims at clinical scientific problems, focusing on the mechanisms of disease development and breakthroughs in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment technologies, conducting full-chain research in basic, applied basic, and translational medicine. Its research in tumor microenvironment and RNA medicine is internationally leading, and its clinical research in stem cells and immune cells ranks among the top in China. The hospital has outstanding ability to undertake research tasks at various levels, with an annual research funding of over 220 million yuan, ranking among the top Grade III Level A hospitals in Guangdong Province in terms of project numbers and funding amounts. Landmark projects approved include the 973 Program, 863 Program, National Key R&D Program, National Natural Science Foundation Innovative Research Group, and National Natural Science Foundation Major Projects. Research findings have been published in internationally renowned academic journals, such as "Cell", "J Clin Immunol", "Nat Commun", "Adv Funct Mater", "Cell Res", "Cancer Res", and "Hepatology". Achievements have been selected for the "2003 World's Top Ten Scientific Breakthroughs" and the Ministry of Education's 2008 and 2018 "Top Ten Scientific and Technological Progress in Chinese Universities", and have won awards such as the Second Prize of the National Natural Science Award.

(3) Solid Progress in Teaching

The Boji Medical School founded by the hospital is the earliest Western medical school in China, marking the beginning of the hospital's teaching career. Based on the century-old teaching tradition, the hospital has developed a "Lingnan teaching characteristic" of "celebrity sentiment, master teaching, and famous expert supervision". The hospital always adheres to integrating its profound historical and cultural heritage, Sun Yat-sen's patriotic ideology, and the noble medical ethics of predecessors into teaching activities to educate and inspire students; firmly adheres to the "Three Basics and Three Strictness" clinical medical teaching philosophy established by Professor Zhou Shoukai; and continuously promotes the brand of "famous teacher guidance", influencing students with the exemplary conduct of senior predecessors, so that students not only master advanced medical knowledge and skills but also cultivate good medical ethics. The hospital undertakes the management and training of more than 1,000 full-time undergraduates, approximately 1,300 full-time postgraduates, and over 500 refresher trainees each year. It is one of the first five institutions in China to offer an eight-year clinical medicine doctoral program on a relatively large scale (100 people per year). It has won the "National Top 100 Excellent Doctoral Dissertations". In addition, the hospital was the earliest in Sun Yat-sen University's medical system to carry out standardized teaching training for faculty. In 1990, the hospital, under the leadership of the then Sun Yat-sen Medical University, carried out standardized residency training. In 2011, it was approved as a clinical pharmacist training base, and in 2014, it was approved as one of the first standardized residency training bases. The hospital wins multiple teaching competition awards at various levels every year. In recent years, the hospital has repeatedly selected teachers to serve as instructors for Sun Yat-sen University's teams, leading them to win the grand prize in national clinical skills competitions for several consecutive years.

III. Multiple Honors

In recent years, the hospital's work has received social recognition, with outstanding performance in public health emergencies and government-assigned medical security tasks such as the fight against SARS, the Wenchuan earthquake, the Yushu earthquake, the southern ice storm disaster, the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, and the medical security for the Guangzhou Asian Games. It has been awarded the titles of "National Advanced Collective in the Pharmaceutical and Health System", "National Model Hospital Trusted by the People", "National Advanced Unit in Medical Insurance Management", "Guangdong Province Civilized Hospital", "Guangdong Province Bethune-style Advanced Collective", "Guangdong Province Advanced Collective in Fighting COVID-19", "Guangdong Province Advanced Primary Party Organization", "Guangdong Province and Guangzhou City Model Collective in Fighting SARS", "Worker Pioneer in Earthquake Relief and Home Reconstruction" by the China Education, Science, Culture, Health and Sports Union, and "Guangzhou's Most Popular Grade III Level A Hospital". (December 2025)