In its teaching practices over a long span, the Department of Ophthalmology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital has always made proactive and fruitful explorations. It lays a solid academic foundation for trainees with 8 segments of theoretical teaching and hands-on skills practice. It has developed a multi-tiered and multi-category teaching model that accommodates different types of trainees, created its own teaching App, and established the “specialty teaching alliance” brand, forming the “progressive and all-round teaching model”. With all this, the Department of Ophthalmology keeps turning out high-caliber professional talents as part of its efforts to drive the high-quality development of ophthalmology across the board.

Teaching: equal emphasis on theoretical knowledge and practical skills

In April 2023, Ophthalmology Retina published a  unique fundus  image, which was a photo of a patient with diabetic retinopathy after vitrectomy  provided by the Department of Ophthalmology, PUMCH. The extraordinary photo came from the regular case review meeting of the Department of Ophthalmology, where each case is a research topic.

▲The ophthalmological image reviewing group was examining CT scans

For typical cases, the department conducts biweekly ward rounds to provide comprehensive and detailed teaching concerning outpatient cases. Each specialized group presents their research progress and share cutting-edge literature every Wednesday afternoon. Three evening lectures per week focusing on the English textbook Basic and Clinical Science Course are scheduled to consolidate the theoretical mastery of junior physicians and medical students.

The four segments of hands-on skills training enhance the practical abilities of young physicians and medical students. The Department of Ophthalmology has  promoted an advanced microscopy training model, including the level 1 Drylab training, the level 2 Wetlab training, and level 3 human eye surgery practical training. The Department of Ophthalmology was among the first in PUMCH to launch  a supervised teaching clinic, where junior physicians and medical students practice independently under the guidance of teachers, thereby significantly improving their practical abilities.

▲Weblab training of the Department of Ophthalmology

Innovation: keep exploring in practices

The Department of Ophthalmology was among the first in China to offer a doctoral program, a master’s program and a postdoctoral program. Currently, there are 18 doctoral candidates and 15 master's candidates studying in the department, as well as 11 clinical postdoctoral fellows.

The adoption of information technology enables fine-grained teaching management. The teaching App that the Department of Ophthalmology developed on its own enables recording and management of 13 teaching activities and management of interactive courses. Teachers can also use the App to make statistical summaries, view personal lecture information and receiving teaching feedback.

▲The teaching App of the Department of Ophthalmology

The Department of Ophthalmology took the lead in implementing a “tutor system” for postgraduate trainees and visiting doctors, under which the tutors communicate regularly with the trainees, offering them assistance and guidance, and help them address issues that may arise.  

Leadership: high-quality teaching contributes to overall development

As one of the first standardized residency training bases, the Department of Ophthalmology has been celebrating the annual Resident Doctor Day since the 1990s, which is an immersive opportunity for junior physicians to acquire the clinical knowledge and skills of ophthalmology and to improve their clinical thinking.

▲Group picture of the 2023 Resident Doctor Day of the Department of Ophthalmology, PUMCH

The Department of Ophthalmology currently has eight doctoral supervisors. It has launched the selection of “backup candidates for the Talent Program” to motivate more young talents to take up more challenging tasks. The first clinical postdoctoral fellow trained by the department has already started to work as a mentor for others.

Echoing its call for boosting hospital development with talents, PUMCH took the lead in establishing the “ National Health Commission-affiliated Hospital Ophthalmology Teaching Alliance”. In the same year, PUMCH rallied 16 hospitals to establish the “Chinese hospital alliance for advanced teaching and training of ophthalmological residents”. PUMCH has also established a first-class teaching resources sharing platform to promote the high-quality training of ophthalmological residents across the board in China.

Written by Wang Jingxia, Chen Huan and Yang Zhikun

Pictures courtesy of Sun Liang and the Department of Ophthalmology

Translated by Liu Haiyan

Edited by Wang Jingxia, Zhang Xia and Wang Yao