Summer vacations are idyllic months when the pressures of school can be momentarily laid to rest and the thoughts of tests and grades can be put off until next year. This, however, is not quite the case at one school. In one of the classrooms at National Yang-Ming Medical College a meeting is in progress, one which concerns the busy agenda of several of this prestigious school's students' summer plans. These students are getting ready to embark on a summer of field work with one of the school's team projects. This is the school's 7th annual Cancer Prevention Crusade.

Wang Ssu-hung is a third year medical student who is one of the team leaders in the cancer project. This year he will return to his home in Yunlin to direct the investigative team's effort in that area. After leaving his beloved home region as a high school student, Wang Ssu-hung is finally getting a chance to return. On this visit though he will actually be able to use the medical knowledge he has acquired in class in the promotion of health care in the field.

Chou Ying-cheng is another medical student participating in the group field work project sponsored through the school. He, along with 30 other fellow students went to Ilan County to do work in Public Hygiene.

Despite incredible economic development during the past decade, there is still demand for more medical care services in the more inaccessible rural areas. In contrast to this there were 12 veteran's hospitals (hospitals for the retired servicemen) which were in need of qualified medical professionals. In order to meet these pressing needs the Ministry of Education in cooperation with the Vocational Assistance Commission of Retired Servicemen (VACRS) began meeting in 1971 to plan and design a new medical college. In 1975 the National Yang-Ming Medical College was opened in the Peit'ou area, under the chancellorship of first college president, Dr. Paul Wei Han.

Today the medical college administers four undergraduate colleges: the medical school, College of Dentistry (opened in 1976), the college of Medical Technology (1979), and the Medical College for students with undergraduate degrees. (Unlike the some countries in the West, students attend comprehensive medical studies after high school). In addition the college now boasts four graduate departments: the Institute of Neurosciences (1980), Institute of Microbiology and Immunology (1981), Institute of Biochemistry (1982), and the most recent, the Institute of Medical Engineering. There is also one program offered for Ph.D. research in the Institute of Microbiology and Immunology.

While the college is considered a small school in terms of student enrollment and size, it has use of one of Taiwan's best equipped hospitals, the Veterans General Hospital in suburban T'ien Mu as its teaching hospital. Complementing the excellent hospital facilities is a qualified staff of instructors that rivals the best medical staff anywhere. Of a total staff of 274 instructors, there are 66 holding Ph.D.'s, 52 with MA's, and all with university degrees. Highly skilled hospital physicians from all fields of medicine take on the important task of field instruction in the hospitals.

In light of such a complete system of instruction and equipment, it is not surprising that graduates from the college taking the comprehensive tests for doctors seeking accreditation in the United States (ECFMC) finished first with an overall average score of 80.4 from among the 118 different medical schools represented.

Being a national college, the students attend school through government assistance, but upon graduation must give six years of medical service across the nation. Graduates are usually sent to rural areas where their expertise is most needed. Despite the fact that students accept the terms of their education, they are often apprehensive as to where they will be located upon graduation. To help set an example to early students, the first president, Dr. Han, spent six months in Hengchun, in Pingtung County doing medical service. His selfless action served to bring to light to the students the importance of not overlooking their responsibilities to the government program.

Under the present system, 10% of graduating students with a higher overall performance continue to stay on at the college either to work as teaching assistants or in research. The other 90% are split into two groups, one that is connected with the veteran's hospitals and the other with the Department of Health to be sent out to different areas for service.

While the school says grades are not the only standard for measuring appointments, the academic environment at the college is quite intense. Students are exposed to a great amount of complex material in lectures. Instructors, in order to help students, use audiovisual aids such as films, and slides that can be loaned out from the library for after-class review. One hour's lecture time must be compensated with several hours of work.

Faced with such an intense course load and heady academic atmosphere, students flock to participate in the summer programmes sponsored by the school. These groups help instill the importance of medicine and in many ways give these future doctors a sense of accomplishment that cannot be obtained from their text books.

The College of Dentistry is renowned for its superior equipment which rivals that of the Veteran's General Hospital's dental clinic. Like its sister medical school, the dentistry school is representative of the competitive standards of the school.

In recent years the research facilities of the National Yang-Ming Medical College have been doing intensive experimental work in combating B-Type Hepatitus. The Medical Technology department has taken the major responsibility for this task.

Research is a key word in the future development of the college. Commitment to developing new frontiers in medical services is the school's goal. Besides the present research institutes, the school has plans to open new graduate research institutes in Physiology, Pharmacology, and Medical Genetics.

Despite the college's brief history, its policy of sponsoring students to create a national system of medical services augurs well for the future. With this egalitarian system of developing doctors for the nation, it will not only be the students who benefit from a medical education, but a nation benefiting from quality health care.

(Gerald Hatherly)

[Picture Caption]

1. After class students frequently rush to the library to use the video-cassette machine. They review films on course-related material. 2. Spirited characters carved into this long, steep embankment encourage students to use strength and determination. 3. An important part of the medical student's lab work is dissection. Instructors first teach students by using frogs for the operation.

1. Under the instruction and guidance of the director or specialists, the interns conduct bedside sessions with patients. 2. Director of the Graduate Institute of Neurology, Dr. Chou Teh-cheng is in the midst of conducting inspection of developing neuroglia culture. 3. Neuroscientific study of the brain is extremely complex. Here graduate students examine and discuss a model of the brain. 4. Experiments involving animals is another important course studied by medical students. 5. Only during the student orientation period will you see such a relaxed, fun-filled atmosphere. 6. Formerly the assistant director of the Veteran's General Hospital, new school president Yu Ch'un is not only an authority on radiology but is a talented administrator as well.

1. Ch'ien Chia-yun, associate professor of neuroscience instructs a research student conducting an experiment. 2. The student athletic field is the only level area on campus. This vantage point gives the observer a complete view of the school grounds. 3. The student cafeteria offers a lovely view. After a long, arduous day of classes students can relax and enjoy a meal while admiring the view of Taipei. 4. Lined by stately banyan trees, the men's dormitory overlooks the women's residence and is situated close to the student activity center.

1. The dentistry student must apply all her attention to discovering the problem in this tooth. 2. Even though his shift is over, and it is late in the evening, this practicing student is in the lab working on a tooth mold. 3. Scattered rays of sunlight serve to give the somber atmosphere of the graduate building an aura of warmth. 4. In the brightly lit girls' dormitory, two students enjoy a relaxing game of chess after the rigors of classes. 5. After the pressures of tests, students head out-of-doors to barbecue and socialize. 6. A view from a campus embankment at dusk offers an unlimited view of the meandering Tamsui River and Kuanyin Hill.

2. Spirited characters carved into this long, steep embankment encourage students to use strength and determination.

3. An important part of the medical student's lab work is dissection. Instructors first teach students by using frogs for the operation.

1. Under the instruction and guidance of the director or specialists, the interns conduct bedside sessions with patients.

2. Director of the Graduate Institute of Neurology, Dr. Chou Teh-cheng is in the midst of conducting inspection of developing neuroglia culture.

3. Neuroscientific study of the brain is extremely complex. Here graduate students examine and discuss a model of the brain.

4. Experiments involving animals is another important course studied by medical students.

5. Only during the student orientation period will you see such a relaxed, fun-filled atmosphere.

6. Formerly the assistant director of the Veteran's General Hospital, new school president Yu Ch'un is not only an authority on radiology but is a talented administrator as well.

1. Ch'ien Chia-yun, associate professor of neuroscience instructs a research student conducting an experiment.

2. The student athletic field is the only level area on campus. This vantage point gives the observer a complete view of the school grounds.

3. The student cafeteria offers a lovely view. After a long, arduous day of classes students can relax and enjoy a meal while admiring the view of Taipei.

4. Lined by stately banyan trees, the men's dormitory overlooks the women's residence and is situated close to the student activity center.

1. The dentistry student must apply all her attention to discovering the problem in this tooth.

4. In the brightly lit girls' dormitory, two students enjoy a relaxing game of chess after the rigors of classes.

5. After the pressures of tests, students head out-of-doors to barbecue and socialize.

6. A view from a campus embankment at dusk offers an unlimited view of the meandering Tamsui River and Kuanyin Hill.

2. Even though his shift is over, and it is late in the evening, this practicing student is in the lab working on a tooth mold.

3. Scattered rays of sunlight serve to give the somber atmosphere of the graduate building an aura of warmth.