Strove to Establish NCKU College of Medicine as an Institute Promoting a Humanitarian Spirit and International Connection
/ Kun-Yen Huang / Founder and first president of NCKU College of Medicine
Though not an NCKU alumnus, Dean Kun-Yan Huang strove to plan and establish the College of Medicine at NCKU. Without his efforts, the College would not have become what it is today, while the Taiwan Medical Accreditation Council (TMAC) he was assigned later by the Ministry of Education to establish in order to promote the cultivation of medical talent in Taiwan would not be a reality. He is widely respected as the father of Taiwan’s medical education and a selfless educator, artist, and innovator.
Father of Taiwan’s Medical Education, Promoting a Medical Education Based on Humanistic Values
Dean Kun-Yan Huang (1933－2012) was a widely admired scholar and an advocate of incorporating the humanities in health education in Taiwan, hence the name, “father of Taiwan’s medical education.” He believed that the faculty’s humanistic values and attitudes are the key to students’ core competencies, so he decided to create a mentor system. Even when he was occupied with tasks in preparation for the establishment of a medical school, he still made it a point to attend classes as an auditor and help teachers modify their research papers. As part of spatial design, faculty offices are equipped with glass cubicle partitions, allowing teachers to collaborate and communicate for academic or research purposes.
Dr. Huang was a globally renowned microbiologist specializing in IFNs and infection immunology. At different times, he served as a visiting professor at NTU College of Medicine, founding dean of NCKU College of Medicine, director of TMAC, minister of the Medical Education Committee under the Ministry of Education (MOE), and advisor to MOE. A highly esteemed and beloved doctor, he was also respected for his many other roles as an educator, innovator, artist, calligrapher, and author.
Dr. Huang was an avid reader and a diligent writer. He was keen to encourage medical students and young practitioners to develop humanistic competencies while pursuing medical knowledge in order to become doctors with integrity, compassion, and professionalism. Two of his books, A Physician Writer’s Notes on Life (published in 2000), and Doctors Are No Angels: A Physician Writer’s Compassionate Care to His Patients (published in 2003), have been designated by different medical schools as reading materials for students. In addition to writing medical textbooks, he also published a book titled A Few Thoughts on Raising Children and Parenting in 2004, which answered the question about the nature of parenting posed by two presidential candidates in 2004 Taiwan’s presidential election. This book is much loved, read, and shared by many Taiwanese parents. Even today, this inspiring book is worth reading carefully by parents.
Aspired to Be an Influential Intellectual; Created NCKU College of Medicine to Seek Humanism in Healthcare
The most famous quote by Dr. Huang is: “To be an influential intellectual is the only career I intend to pursue.” It was the intellectual courage that led the 49-year-old Dr. Huang who earned a good living and lived comfortably in the United States to accept the then NCKU President Dr. Han-Min Xia’s invitation to help with establishing the NCKU College of Medicine from scratch in 1982. Only a courageous intellectual would go to great pains to contribute to society.
This painstaking construction is the end result of former Dean Kun-Yan Huang’s aspiration and imagination in medical education. He had overseen everything through the process of construction and beyond, including recruitment of talented, qualified faculty, incorporation of the humanities and aesthetics into medical education, and curriculum design.
Back then, many professionals were moved and persuaded by Dean Huang to teach at NCKU for his forward-thinking vision of the College of Medicine. A lot of the recruited professors from abroad actually rejected NTU’s offer before teaching at NCKU. By adhering to the motto: “Go all the way, or don’t go at all” over the course of his life, Dr. Huang had made many accomplishments, including setting up the NCKU medical school and hospital so as to better the lives of people in southern Taiwan.
Under the influence of Dr. Kun-Yan Huang, the NCKU College of Medicine has been created to be an institution of higher education that is vastly different from the College of Engineering. To be specific, it includes a focus on the humanities, an aesthetic pursuit, and a dedication to the common good. With his efforts in buying a Steinway Piano through fundraising, decorating the campus with artworks, setting up the Wu Tien Bookstore, building Shih Chuan Plaza, and helping to form the NCKU MCC (medical center chorus), the NCKU College of Medicine has become an outstanding medical school that seeks humanistic care in a healthcare setting.
Created a Medical Accreditation System to Elevate Medical Schools to International Levels
Dr. Huang was not only the founder of NCKU College of Medicine but had also sought to be an influential figure in the educational field in Taiwan. One of his famous quotes is: “Before you become a doctor, become a man,” pointing to the fact that “it is for humans that medical practices are aimed,” as medicine is to treat patients with a disease instead of the disease itself. Many years have passed yet this still rings true.
Apart from being dedicated to medical education, Dr. Huang also advised the government to formulate new evaluation and accreditation systems for domestic medical schools. With his insistence on communication with authorities concerned, MOE officially set up TMAC and Taiwan Nursing Accreditation Council (TNAC), leaving a lasting effect on medical education in Taiwan. As pointed out by Yan-Shen Shan, the incumbent dean of NCKU College of Medicine, the completion of the medical accreditation system has set up rules for all medical schools in Taiwan to comply with and elevated domestic medical schools to international levels.
National Issues Were Also a Lifelong Concern for Dr. Kun-Yan Huang
Dr. Huang led an NGO delegation to Europe to lobby for Taiwan’s right to join the World Health Organization and years later, strove for the opportunity to join the Association for Medical Education in the Western Pacific Region (AMEWPR) as a non-member. It was considered a major diplomatic breakthrough at that time.
Though Dr. Huang has passed away, his exemplary achievements will be always remembered. The rosy trumpet trees, dubbed the “Trees of Medicine Practice” in the front yard of NCKU College of Medicine, remind NCKU faculty and students of the belief of Dr. Huang: “You must be a human being with specific humanistic qualities before you become a qualified doctor.” (Photo courtesy of: CommonWealth Magazine)
NCKUer ｜
Years of presidency in NCKU Hospital ｜
Honors and Achievements ｜
Kun-Yan Huang
Founder and Dean of NCKU College of Medicine (1984-1995)
・Graduated from George Washington University (School of Medicine) and earned a doctorate degree in microbiology in 1966. He had been hired by the university for 16 years since 1968 and made great contributions toward IFNs and infection immunology during that period of time.
・In 1982, Dr. Huang returned to Taiwan by request to help establish NCKU Medical Center, which was among the Fourteen Major Construction Projects.
・Acted as proxy director of the Clinical Research Division of the National Health Research Institutes in 1998, leading the construction project on Chunan Science Park’s facilities and buildings.
・Elected Director of TMAC in 2000.
・Led an NGO delegation to Europe to lobby for Taiwan’s right to join the World Health Organization in 2000, yielding satisfactory diplomatic results.
・Strove for Taiwan’s participation as a non-member in AMEWPR in 2008, which was a major and much welcomed diplomatic breakthrough to Taiwan.
・The book Doctors Are No Angels: A Physician Writer’s Compassionate Care to His Patients (published in 2003) has been designated as a reading material to students at different medical schools.
Kun-Yan Huang / Founder and Dean of NCKU College of Medicine (1984-1995)
・Graduated from George Washington University (School of Medicine) and earned a doctorate degree in microbiology in 1966. He had been hired by the university for 16 years since 1968 and made great contributions toward IFNs and infection immunology during that period of time.
・In 1982, Dr. Huang returned to Taiwan by request to help establish NCKU Medical Center, which was among the Fourteen Major Construction Projects.
・Acted as proxy director of the Clinical Research Division of the National Health Research Institutes in 1998, leading the construction project on Chunan Science Park’s facilities and buildings.
・Elected Director of TMAC in 2000.
・Led an NGO delegation to Europe to lobby for Taiwan’s right to join the World Health Organization in 2000, yielding satisfactory diplomatic results.
・Strove for Taiwan’s participation as a non-member in AMEWPR in 2008, which was a major and much welcomed diplomatic breakthrough to Taiwan.
・The book Doctors Are No Angels: A Physician Writer’s Compassionate Care to His Patients (published in 2003) has been designated as a reading material to students at different medical schools.
