Air Force Medical University of PLA (the Fourth Military Medical University) is a national key university intending to train high- and middle-level medical professionals for the army. The University has developed into its present form through the amalgamation of the former Fourth Military Medical University and the former Fifth Military Medical University in 1954, and then was transferred under Air Force after incorporating Air Force Aeromedicine Institute and renamed as Air Force Medical University in 2017. The University was accredited as one of the national first batch of 20 key universities by Central Committee of CPC in 1959, one of key academies under construction by the army in 1995, one of 22 key academies under construction of “Project 211” of the first batch in 1997, and one of the academies under construction of the national first-rate disciplines in 2017. The university is located in the ancient city of Xi’an.

Since its establishment, the University has cultivated more than 90,000 high quality medical talents successively, and many graduates have been the international and national well-known experts and scholars as well as the leaders in health organizations at different levels of PLA. The national advanced models awarded by the State and the army have emerged, such as Zhang Hua, an “Excellent University Student with Lofty Ideals and Self-sacrificing Spirit”; Huashan Fighting Collective; Model Cadet Regiment; Li Jishuo, a “Great Master of Education”; and Chen Shaoyang, a “Model Military Surgeon”.

The University has a galaxy of talents and strong teaching, medical and scientific research strength. It has 2 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, 5 academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, 12 candidates of National “Ten Thousand Talents Program”, 1 candidate of National “Thousand Talents Program”, 7 chief scientists of National “973” Program, 33 “Changjiang Scholars” awarded by the Ministry of Education, 10 candidates of National Hundred, Thousand and Ten Thousand Talents Project, 7 national young and middle-aged experts with outstanding contributions, 20 winners of National Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, 13 national excellent scientific and technological workers, 5 winners of “Truth Seeking” Practical Engineering Award for Distinguished Young Scholars, 14 candidates of New Century Excellent Talent Support Program by the Ministry of Education, 2 winners of Significant Contribution Award for Military Professional Technology, 5 winners of Military Distinguished Technical Specialist Award, 15 training objects of military innovative talent project, and 37 winners of Education Gold Award for Military Academies. Now the University has 339 doctoral supervisors, 579 master’s supervisors, and 5 members of Discipline Appraisal Board under Academic Degrees Committee of the State Council. It has more than 300 internationally and domestically well-known experts such as Zhou Guangzhao and Yang Zhenning as honorary professors or guest professors.

The University presently has three education levels, i.e. bachelor degree, master degree and professional education. As the first batch of units with doctoral and master degree authorization approved by the State Council, the University has 11 first-level disciplines authorized for doctoral degree, 12 first-level disciplines authorized for master degree, and 10 postdoctoral research stations. At present, 6 subject areas rank among the global top 1% of ESI, and 25 disciplines rank top 10 nationwide. The University has 19 national key and developing disciplines, 1 national major scientific research infrastructure, 2 national key laboratories, 2 national clinical research centers, 20 military construction projects of national key clinical specialty, 28 PLA specialized medical centers, 14 military logistics scientific laboratories, and 15 PLA key medical laboratories. In recent years, the University has made remarkable achievements in educational reform. The University gained the Grand Prize for National Teaching Achievements, together with Peking University in 2001, and the First Prize for National Teaching Achievements in 2009. It has 11 national excellent doctoral dissertations, 42 PLA excellent doctoral dissertations, and 51 PLA excellent master dissertations.

The University has the first-class teaching facilities. The University Library with an area of more than 12,000 square meters has a collection of over 600,000 books, nearly 1,000 printed journals in Chinese and English, and 40 databases in variety. At present, it has 4 sets of wired networks and 1 set of wireless network, covering the whole campus. It has teaching facilities such as the Teaching Specimen Exhibition Hall, the Computer Teaching Laboratory, the Foreign Language Teaching Center, the Preclinical Medicine Teaching Experiment Center, the Sports Venue, and the Swimming Pool, and a number of advanced facilities including digital interactive teaching system, virtual experiment teaching system, clinical skill simulation training system, dual source spiral CT, intra-operative NMR, surgical robot, PET/CT, PET/MR, helical tomotherapy system, and stereotactic radiotherapy system.

The University has made notable achievements in medical work. Three affiliated hospitals are Grade III Class A hospitals. The comprehensive strength of the First Affiliated Hospital has ranked the fifth nationwide for 6 consecutive years. The Third Affiliated Hospital has been on the top four among the national stomatological hospital rankings. In the national fourth round of discipline evaluation result released by the Ministry of Education in 2017, the stomatology discipline in the Third Affiliated Hospital ranked A+ together with Peking University and Sichuan University. The University has successively made more than 90 international and national “Top One” or “One and Only” medical achievements, the world first case of “ten-severed-finger replantation ”, the world first case of “serious facial defect reconstruction ”, China ’s first and world ’s second case of “face transplantation”, and China ’s first case of “Human uterus transplantation”, with significant influence at home and abroad.

The University has attached great importance to scientific research and international academic exchange, and also has gained a large number of research results. In recent years, the University has won more than 1,000 science and technology achievement awards, involving 1 National Award for Natural Sciences, 8 National Awards for Technological Invention, 57 National Awards for Progress in Science and Technology, 32 First Prizes for Military Progress in Science and Technology, 17 First Prizes for Military Medical Achievements, and 81 First Prizes for Provincial Progress in Science and Technology. Since “the Eleventh Five-year Plan”, the university has gained 8 projects of “973” Chief Scientist Program, more than 4,400 scientific research projects at ministerial and provincial level or above, and total scientific research funds of over RMB 2.8 billion. The university had won 5 First Prizes for National Awards for Progress in Science and Technology for 4 consecutive years from 2008 to 2011, and had won the Innovative Team for National Awards for Progress in Science and Technology in 2016. In recent 5 years, the university has successively assigned more than 2,000 persons to visit and attend the international conference, study abroad or make academic exchange in the international renowned teaching, medical and research institutes, and has received nearly 1,000 foreign experts and scholars for visiting the university. Nowadays, the university has established the stable academic exchange channel and cooperative relationship with nearly 30 academic institutions from America, England, Japan, France, Germany, Australia, and other countries.

The University persists in the aim of the people’s army and firmly fulfills the mission of the people’s army. In Anti-Japanese War, Liberation War, War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, Suppression of Rebellion in Tibet, and Sino-India and Sino-Vietnamese Border Counterattack in Self-defense, the University inherited the red gene by its faith and loyalty, and accomplished the mission of rescue in battlefield. It has performed more than 30 medical support tasks in non-war military operations such as fighting against SARS, flood relief, earthquake relief, National Day Parade, Security Check in World Expo, Three Defenses in Asian Games, Stability Maintenance, and International Peacekeeping, and has received the praise and honor from the Party, country and Military Commission more than once. In 2010, it accomplished “Harmony Mission – 2010” medical security task in the Gulf of Aden. In 2015, it assigned 17 persons to perform the task of Fighting against Ebola in Africa, set up the bridge of China-Africa friendship by exquisite medical skills, and revealed the elegant demeanour of the Chinese military surgeon. In 2016, it organized the medical service backbones to take part in medical security of SCO “Peace Mission – 2016” international joint military exercise. The University had successively attended the National Day Parade for three times, and especially in Parade of the 60th Anniversary of the Founding of PRC, the formations of female PLA soldiers had received the review of the motherland and people, and created and fulfilled the spirit of formations of female PLA soldiers.

At the new historical period, the University will focus on the strategy of accelerating the construction of a powerful air force with air and space integration and defensive and offensive capabilities under correct leadership of Central Military Commission and Air Force Party Committee, persist in the development idea of air force based, PLA oriented, stressing on features, and intensive school running and the construction standard of top one in military medicine battlefield and world top one in preclinical medicine, aim at the target of century-old school, and strive for creating the PLA top, national leading, and world famous university in military medicine.