Under a collaborative agreement, Pittsburgh-based UPMC is one step closer to opening an international medical center in China, according to a Pittsburgh Business Times report.
Last August, UPMC announced a five-year advisory agreement with Xiangya Hospital of Central South University in Changsha to open Xiangya International Medical Center. So far, four floors — including 36 beds and two floors of outpatient clinics — of the existing 14-story hospital tower are renovated. UPMC has also trained staff in customer service, infection control, Joint Commission International accreditation and post-hospital care.
The international medical center will eventually include 200 beds within the 3,500-bed hospital for commercially insured or self-pay patients. UPMC said the medical center is part of an effort, backed by the Chinese government, to relieve overcrowding in public hospitals. The tentative date the hospital will open was not specified.
The five-year agreement is UPMC's second advisory deal in China. In April 2011, UPMC entered a definitive agreement with KingMed Diagnostics, the largest independent medical diagnostic laboratory in China.