BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 28. Azerbaijan will launch diploma courses in Chinese and Korean medicine, Minister of Health Teymur Musayev said in a joint interview with Azerbaijan Television’s “Hadaf” program and Trend News Agency.
Speaking about traditional medicine, the minister said the focus should not be on rejecting past practices or specific methods, but rather on applying them based on scientific evidence.
“Traditional medicine has a history spanning thousands of years. Over the past decade, an approach known as integrative medicine has emerged in healthcare. Later, the term functional medicine also became widely used, but the concept of integrative medicine remains very important. This represents a different approach within everyday medical practice. The issue is not about rejecting the past or any particular method, but about applying these approaches based on evidence.
When people talk about traditional medicine, some refer to folk remedies, and I will not comment on that, as it is a separate issue. However, when we speak about traditional medicine, traditional Chinese medicine is an approach that has proven itself and demonstrated effectiveness in the treatment of certain diseases, as well as in preventive healthcare.
Traditional Korean medicine and other forms of Eastern traditional medicine are also part of this field. Azerbaijan is also an integral part of this process. I would especially like to emphasize that Azerbaijan’s medical school has always been very open to such approaches, and this is a positive development. As the Ministry of Health, we have taken steps in this direction, and preparations are currently underway to establish a diploma course in Traditional Chinese Medicine at the Azerbaijan State Advanced Training Institute for Doctors named after Aziz Aliyev, in cooperation with Beijing University of Chinese Medicine of the People’s Republic of China. The course will be conducted in English and will be open not only to Azerbaijani doctors, but also to foreign medical professionals from the region and internationally. Its duration may be one or two years,” Musayev said.
The minister noted that a similar approach is being considered for traditional Korean medicine as well. “Currently, negotiations are underway with the relevant Korean official institutions, and this program will also be introduced in Azerbaijan in the near future,” he said.
Musayev said such courses could expand the professional capabilities of doctors and provide patients with additional treatment options.
“I believe that these courses will be of interest to family doctors working in Azerbaijan, people with basic medical education and specialists from various medical fields who are interested in this area. They will enrich the methods they apply in their daily practice, expand their range of options and create new opportunities for our citizens in terms of using different approaches. These are treatment methods that are widely and effectively applied, particularly in rehabilitation, chronic diseases, chronic pain management and other areas. Phytotherapy is also included here, meaning treatment methods based on medicinal plants. This is a comprehensive approach. It would not be right to reject it.
There is public interest and demand for these methods. At the very least, to ensure that they do not cause harm, such methods should only be applied by people with medical qualifications. For those who have received medical education and specialized in any medical field, this should become one of the factors strengthening their professional practice. Azerbaijan also has its own specialists in this area, and a certain school of traditional medicine has already been established. There are professionals working both in the private and public sectors. We believe that involving them in this process will allow us to bring Azerbaijan’s local traditional medicine school to a new level,” the minister added.
