Dr. Antonia Villarruel Explores Potential Collaboration Opportunities in China
U-M delegation to Beijing celebrates the one year anniversary of the Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research.
Last month, University of Michigan researchers and their partners from Peking University Health Science Center gathered in Beijing in a symposium of their Joint Institute for Translational and Clinical Research. The Institute, established one year ago, seeks to promote collaborative research in pulmonary, cardiovascular and liver diseases through exchanges of faculty, medical residents, fellows and other researchers.
From September 26 to 30, 2011, U-M delegation members met with their colleagues in Beijing to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Institute. During that time, the group kept a blog documenting their visit to China with photos and written entries describing some of the trip’s activities, such as touring campuses and climbing the Great Wall. The blog also presents an overview of the pilot studies that have been launched by the Institute, including research on cardiovascular disease, hepatitis C, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and obesity.Dr. Antonia Villarruel, professor and associate dean for Research and Global Affairs, also attended the trip with the objective to explore potential collaborations between U-M School of Nursing and the Institute. In addition, she and Li Gao, a U-M School of Nursing graduate now working as a nurse practitioner in the emergency department at UMHS, met with the dean of Peking University’s School of Nursing. The two schools already enjoy an existing partnership, and used last month’s meeting to identify several areas of collaboration that will benefit both schools and the Institute.
“Being part of a university initiative dealing with healthcare is an important aspect of interdisciplinary collaboration,” said Villarruel. “Our involvement here will help to advance nurses by providing education and practice opportunities for nurses in both countries.”
