The Department of RespiratoryCritical Care Medicine was established in 1958. In 1980, the department set up a specialized pulmonary disease ward,in 1994, it expanded to a dedicated department. In 1998, it was approved as a clinical doctoral program for the integrated ChineseWestern medicine respiratory specialty. Today, the department is recognized as a National TCM Specialty Development Unit, a key specialtydiscipline of the Jiangsu Provincial Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine,a model for the standardized construction of PCCM (pulmonarycritical care medicine) in China. It is also designated as a Center for Standardized DiagnosisTreatment of Interstitial Lung Diseasea Lung Cancer Standardized DiagnosisTreatment Unit. Furthermore, the department serves as the Clinical Medicine Innovation Center for TCM Lung Nodules at Jiangsu Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

The department has always adhered to a philosophy that emphasizes Chinese medicine, integrating it with Western medicine,has consistently prioritized patient needs. By continuously improving its professional knowledge, introducing new equipmenttechnologies from both domesticinternational sources, the department strives to provide the highest quality service to its patients.

Founded by renowned Chinese medicine experts Professor Cao MinggaoDirector Li Shiqing, the department has grown through the dedicated efforts of several generations of physicians. Today, it boasts a wealth of experience, with 1 National Expert in TCM Academic Inheritance, 2 Jiangsu Provincial Famous TCM Doctors, 1 Jiangsu Provincial TCM Leader, 2 experts receiving State Council Special Allowance, 2 National Outstanding TCM Clinical Talents,3 Jiangsu Provincial Outstanding TCM Clinical Talents. The team currently includes 30 clinical physicians, 54 nurses, 4 PhD supervisors,6 Masters supervisors, forming a highly academic, well-structured,professional team.

The department consists of several key areas, including outpatient services, inpatient wards, the Respiratory Endoscopy Center, the Pulmonary Function Room, the Multichannel Sleep Monitoring Room,the Comprehensive TCM Treatment Room. These facilities are distributed across the mainZhidong hospital campuses. It operates 13 outpatient consultation rooms109 beds. The department is equipped with a range of specialized equipment, including electronic bronchoscopes, ultrasound bronchoscopy, electronic thoracoscopy, rigid bronchoscope, multifunctional cryotherapy, argon plasma coagulation, pulmonary function testing devices, invasivenon-invasive ventilators,high-flow respiratory humidification oxygen therapy devices.

The department excels in clinical capabilities, with over 270,000 outpatient visits annually. It also demonstrates strong comprehensive service capacity, with over 5,300 inpatient admissions annually. In the past three years, the department has been recognized with several honors, including advanced collective status for fulfilling the "Leading by Example" mission from the Nanjing Municipal Peoples Government, the Second Batch of Provincial Model Party Branches,the Advanced Collective of Jiangsu Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

The department places a strong emphasis on the development of subspecialties. Currently, it has three main subspecialties: Chronic Airway Diseases (including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma, bronchiectasis); Pulmonary Infections/Interstitial Lung Disease (including community-acquired pneumonia, hospital-acquired pneumonia, interstitial lung diseases); Pulmonary Tumors (including lung cancerlung nodules).

In the past three years, the department has led 18 clinical research projects, secured 20 basic research grants, including National Natural Science Foundation projects,published 98 papers, of which 39 are SCI-indexed. The department has also been instrumental in developing the diagnostictreatment protocols for COPDcommunity-acquired pneumonia as part of Jiangsu Province’s TCM advantage disease treatment plans. It actively promotes the application of these protocols in TCM hospitalsgrassroots healthcare facilities across the province, leveraging platforms like the Jiangsu Provincial TCM Lung Disease Quality Control Center, Jiangsu Provincial TCM Respiratory Alliance,the Jiangsu Provincial Grassroots Specialty Department Incubation Center.

The department is also heavily involved in academic training. It undertakes the teaching of core courses such as Diagnosis, TCM Internal Medicine,Western Medicine Internal Medicine at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. Over the past three years, it has trained 85 master’sdoctoral students in Traditional Chinese Medicineintegrated ChineseWestern Medicine.