China-Malaysia MoU aims to take TCM to next level
After the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Malaysia and China, the two countries vowed to boost collaboration and elevate the status of TCM in this country.
马来西亚与中国签署谅解备忘录后，两国承诺加强合作，提升中医药在我国的地位。
Malaysia's Minister of Health Khairy Jamaluddin acknowledged that "in Malaysia, research in traditional and complementary medicine is still in its infancy. Thus, the vast knowledge and expertise possessed by the People's Republic of China in traditional medicine will certainly be able to benefit Malaysia, especially in research activities, including from the aspect of prevention and treatment of communicable and non-communicable diseases."
马来西亚卫生部长Khairy Jamaluddin承认，“在马来西亚，传统医学和补充医学的研究仍处于起步阶段。因此，中华人民共和国在传统医学方面所拥有的丰富知识和专业知识必将造福马来西亚，尤其是在研究活动中，包括从传染病和非传染病的预防和治疗方面。”
In Malaysia, the traditional and complementary medicine field – be it from the Chinese, Malay or Indian traditions – has largely been self-regulating. But that is changing following parliament's passing of the Traditional and Complementary Medicine Act (T&CM Act).
在马来西亚，传统和补充医学领域——无论是来自华人、马来人还是印度人的传统——在很大程度上都是自我调节的。但随着议会通过《传统和补充医学法案》（T&CM Act），这种情况正在发生变化。
Within two years, all practitioners of Chinese, Malay and Indian traditional medicine who do not have formal qualifications will have to apply for registration with the Ministry of Health. Only those with at least five years of experience will be eligible.
在两年内，所有没有正式资格的中国、马来和印度传统医学从业者都必须向卫生部申请注册。只有拥有至少五年经验的人才有资格。
A number of higher education institutions in Malaysia already offer degree programs in TCM. INTI University is one of them. It collaborates closely with Chinese universities.
马来西亚的一些高等教育机构已经提供中医学位课程。英迪大学就是其中之一。它与中国大学密切合作。
"In the final year, (the students) have to go for internship," said Dr. Heng Aik Teng, head of the TCM department at INTI University. "We have two parts. Internship 1 they do locally. Internship 2 we encourage them to go to China."
“在最后一年，（学生）必须去实习，”英迪大学中医系主任Heng Aik Teng博士说。 “我们有两个部分。实习1他们在当地做。实习2我们鼓励他们去中国。”
"So, Chinese universities collaborate in the internship and the other area is the teaching method so we can give the best to the students. We must learn from China. Luckily, China supports us," Dr. Heng said.
“所以，中国的大学在实习方面合作，另一个方面是教学方法，所以我们可以把最好的给学生。我们必须向中国学习。幸运的是，中国支持我们，” Heng博士说。
Proponents of TCM believe that the government's move to enforce the T&CM Act and ensure only those registered with the health ministry are able to practice will raise levels of safety and professionalism.
中医药的支持者认为，政府执行 T&CM 法案并确保只有在卫生部注册的人才能够行医的举措将提高安全和专业水平。
That, coupled with China's vow to increase collaboration in formulating policy, in education and in R&D in TCM, should help ensure a healthy future for TCM in Malaysia.
再加上中国承诺在中医药政策制定、教育和研发方面加强合作，应有助于确保马来西亚中医药的健康未来。