Talk to a Concierge  →
Home  ›  Conditions  ›  Traditional Chinese Medicine
One more thing · Integrated care

Traditional Chinese medicine in China.

In China's modern health system, "integrating Chinese and Western medicine" (中西医并重 中西医并重) is a statutory principle. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is not an alternative sitting outside modern care — it is a formal, organic part of the national health system, guided by the logic of "use Chinese where Chinese fits, Western where Western fits, and let the two complement each other."

One practical point. Because TCM and Western medicine share the same hospital record and imaging results, a single appointment can give you a Western diagnosis and a Chinese medicine assessment on the same day — you do not have to choose one system and reject the other.
A statutory principle

Integrated by law, not an alternative.

China's health system gives traditional Chinese medicine formal, co-equal standing with modern biomedicine — and builds clinical practice around the two working together.

The system is built on the principle of 中西医并重 — "equal emphasis on Chinese and Western medicine." TCM is not treated as a fringe or alternative complement; it is an organic component of the same public health system. Clinical decisions follow the idea of 宜中则中、宜西则西 (apply TCM where it fits, Western medicine where it fits), with Chinese and Western medicine complementing each other in diagnosis and treatment.

Illustration of traditional Chinese medicine integrated within China's modern health system
Access & network

A full ladder of TCM services.

TCM is available through a complete, layered public network — not only in specialist hospitals.

Dedicated institutions

TCM hospitals 中医类医院

China runs a complete tier of public TCM hospitals: 5,482 TCM-category hospitals nationwide. By 2025, TCM-category health institutions of all types exceeded 112,000.

Inside general hospitals

TCM departments 中医科

96.26% of secondary-level and above comprehensive public hospitals operate a TCM department and a Chinese pharmacy — so a Western general hospital can directly provide acupuncture, tuina (therapeutic massage), herbal medicine and moxibustion.

At the primary level

TCM pavilions 中医馆

Over 99% of community health centres and over 98% of township clinics offer TCM services; about 42,000 TCM pavilions have been built in grassroots facilities, bringing TCM physiotherapy and 调理 close to residents.

In short: you do not need to choose a specialist hospital to receive TCM — most large general hospitals already offer it on site, and primary-care clinics nearby can provide routine TCM regulation.
Education & oversight

The world's largest TCM education system.

TCM practitioners are trained, licensed and regulated within a national framework — not as unregulated alternatives.

Education & workforce

  • China has built the world's largest TCM higher-education system: 27 independent undergraduate TCM universities, plus about 670 comprehensive universities offering TCM-related programmes.
  • A complete training chain runs from college diploma through bachelor's, master's, doctorate and postdoctoral study.
  • Total TCM health personnel reach 1.236 million.

Licensing & regulation

  • TCM physicians have their own independent practising-certificate examination and registration system. Some Western-medicine doctors also receive systematic TCM training to practise integrated care.
  • TCM treatment items, herbal slices (饮片) and patent medicines (中成药) sit within the national medical-service regulatory framework.
  • Basic TCM items follow the same local government-guided pricing as Western procedures and are supervised by the medical-insurance and pricing authorities. Acupuncture, tuina and similar TCM items are billed normally in public hospitals and are included in domestic medical-insurance reimbursement.
What TCM is good at

Complementary strengths, clear boundaries.

Both systems are used where each works best — and combined for complex or chronic conditions.

Where TCM leads

  • Preventive care (治未病, "treating before illness"), chronic-pain regulation, chronic-disease rehabilitation and post-surgical recovery.

Where Western medicine leads

  • Emergencies, infections, surgery and the curative treatment of malignant tumours are led by modern Western medicine.

When a patient has persistent pain, sleep disturbance, fatigue, gastrointestinal dysfunction or menopausal discomfort — chronic symptoms Western medicine cannot quickly resolve — clinicians often recommend TCM external therapy or herbal medicine as a complementary plan. Many large tertiary general hospitals also run joint Chinese-Western multidisciplinary teams: for complex conditions such as tumours, rheumatological/autoimmune disease and chronic post-surgical recovery, Western and TCM doctors jointly design the plan — using modern imaging and laboratory tests for diagnosis, and adding TCM methods to ease pain, fatigue, insomnia and the side effects of chemo/radiotherapy.

Two systems, one record: TCM and Western medicine in the same hospital share the patient's medical record and imaging results, so a single visit can yield both a Western and a Chinese medicine opinion.
If you are coming from abroad

Both systems, one appointment.

For international patients, the integrated setup means two practical routes — and shared equipment for imaging.

You can choose a dedicated public TCM hospital. Or — within a tertiary general hospital's international department — receive a Western diagnosis and, on that basis, concurrent acupuncture, tuina and other TCM regulation. The two systems share the hospital's imaging equipment and laboratory, so an international patient can complete CT, MRI and other imaging studies and a TCM assessment in the same visit.

Considering TCM alongside your care in China?

The right route depends on whether you want a dedicated TCM hospital or integrated TCM within a general hospital's international department. Browse the hospital directory or contact us to discuss practical options.

Browse hospital directory  →
Not sure where to start?

Tell us what you are looking for.

Share your question, relevant records and intended travel timing. We can explain possible coordination steps.

Talk to a Concierge  →