1st workshop on ‘Behavioral Medicine in a Global World’ & 2016 China Summit Forum on Behavioral Medicine
16-20 November 2016 Jining, China
The first workshop on ‘Behavioral Medicine in a Global World’ & 2016 China Summit Forum on Behavioral Medicine was successfully held in Jining, Shandong province, from November 16 to November 20, 2016. This workshop was organized by the Chinese Society of Behavioral Medicine, the International Society of Behavioral Medicine, and the Centre for Health Behaviors Research, JC School of Public Health and Primary Care, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Support was given by the Jining Medical University and Affiliated Hospital of Jining Medical University.
Distinguished researchers were invited from Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Hong Kong, and Mainland China to give lectures and conduct training in this field.
The workshop aimed 1) to provide an understanding of behavioral medicine and how to apply the concepts and methods to improve the development, implementation, evaluation and scale up of interventions; 2) to give an overview of the approaches for developing effective behavioral interventions and different kinds of interventions for clinical, community and public health applications; 3) to introduce early and mid-career researchers in China to new approaches and methods for research; 4) to develop a new network of researchers in China who are linked with other international researchers in the field of behavioral medicine; and 5) to engage each participant by encouraging them to bring an example of a project to develop further during the workshop. During the workshop, critical areas of behavioral health, such as non-communicable diseases, epidemiologic transitions in China, integrating biomedical information into behavioral intervention, and implementation science, were discussed by Prof. Brian Oldenburg, Prof. Joost Dekker, Prof. Joseph Lau, Prof. Chengxuan Qiu, and Dr. Xuefeng Zhong. Additional program features included small group discussions and research experience sharing.
Participants came from over 16 provinces of China and faculty staff came from different Universities such as Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Harbin Medical University, Nanjing Medical University, Central South University, and Shanxi Medical University. The workshop offered a good opportunity to learn more about behavioral health and to develop an international network for researchers and practitioners in China. Positive feedback was given on this workshop by participants, with an average rating of 9 out 10. Participants commented, “It is so comprehensive to include ideas, models, theories, and practical examples in one workshop!”, “It is an excellent chance to meet the world-class professors and share ideas with them.”, and “I am new in this area but this workshop provides me a good start.”