BMJ Group Strengthens Operations In China

Main Category: Public Health
Article Date: 06 Nov 2007 - 13:00 PDT

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The BMJ Group has been working in China for a number of years and now has opened a sales office in Beijing to capitalise on the growing opportunities for medical publishing in China.

Mr Thomas He Wang has joined the BMJ Group as business manager for China and Hong Kong and already the Group has achieved a major sales success. CALIS, the China Academic Library & Information Service, on behalf of a number of leading medical schools in China has purchased all BMJ Group Journals, including the British Medical Journal on-line (bmj.com) and BMJ Clinical Evidence which provides access to the very latest and most relevant medical knowledge for treatment decisions.

Yuan YIN (Ms.) Director of CALIS Medical Centre said "BMJ Group Journals and BMJ Clinical Evidence are well known to medical libraries in China. We are pleased to be working with the BMJ Group. The consortium is successful and we are expecting a bright future for it."

The BMJ Group has also signed a three year agreement with the Peking University Medical Press (PUMP) to publish a printed version of BMJ Clinical Evidence in the Chinese language.

In addition the BMJ Group has produced a Chinese language interface and navigation for BMJ Clinical Evidence on-line so that medical students, researchers and doctors in China can make better use of the online version via: http://clinicalevidence.bmj.com. This is part of a wider group strategy to make access to vital evidence-based resources easier. The initiative is being expanded to other languages which include Spanish, Turkish, Japanese and Thai.

To help avoid users in China having to pay international internet charges when accessing BMJ Clinical Evidence on-line, the BMJ Group has also invested in a dedicated internet line for Clinical Evidence users. Through co-operation with CERNET, the Chinese Education and Research Network, BMJ Learning, an interactive website supporting continuing professional development, learning and continuing medical education, is also available in China via this dedicated line.

The BMJ Group continues to work with local publishers on a number of initiatives including local language publications and meetings and is encouraging further research from China to be submitted to the British Medical Journal and other Group journals.

Nick Turner, Head of Sales, BMJ Group London said "It's crucial that we expand our operations in China and focus on fulfilling local customer needs in such an important and growing market. We realise that having local partners and presence in China will help us continue to develop the right products for our customer base.

The BMJ Group is one of the world leaders in medical publishing. The Group's mission is to be the most trusted provider of information and services that will make a real difference in clinical practice and improve outcomes for patients.

http://www.bmjgroup.bmj.com