New elderly care partnership with China

A £1million contract has been secured with a Chinese investment company that specialises in providing health and social care for the elderly in China.

Yuan Zhen Limited has chosen Manchester as the location for ‘The Edward Centre for Health Care Research’ and has appointed Professor Jackie Oldham as Honorary Director of the Centre.

The initiative, jointly led by the Manchester Academic Health Science Centre (MAHSC) Health Technology Hub, MIMIT and TRUSTECH, will focus on exploration of care systems, technologies and products that could be developed and adopted for use in China.

Professor Jackie Oldham (MAHSC Health Technology Hub and MIMIT) and Dr Richard Deed (TRUSTECH) were instrumental in bringing the Edward Centre to Manchester. Over the past 18 months they have been working with Yuan Zhen Limited to scope the range and variety of opportunities on offer in Manchester and visited Beijing in September as invited speakers at the inaugural conference on eldercare and tourism. 

Peter Bullock, Managing Director of The Edward Centre and Deputy Managing Director of Yuan Zhen UK Investment Ltd, said: "Manchester is the ideal location for many reasons. We are keen to collaborate with Professor Oldham, who is a leading expert in rehabilitation science, and to access the resources of The University of Manchester and the Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, renowned for their excellence across research, innovation, education and patient service.

"Having already worked very successfully with MIMIT and TRUSTECH, we wanted to build on this strong relationship and take it to the next stage. Manchester also has a vibrant Chinese community and is a destination of choice for industry and entrepreneurs."

Professor Oldham said she was delighted at being invited to be Honorary Director of The Edwards Centre for Healthcare Research: "We see this as a great opportunity for collaboration with China and sharing expertise and enabling developments in providing high quality care for elderly people."

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Notes for editors

Caption: Front row left to right: Professor Ian Jacobs, Vice-President and Dean of the University of Manchester’s Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences and Director of MAHSC, and Peter Bullock, Managing Director of The Edward Centre and Deputy Managing Director, Yuan Zhen UK Investment Ltd. Second row left to right: Dan Fu, Administration and Finance Manager, Yuan Zhen UK Investment Ltd, Alexis Ward, Project Manager for the collaboration, Professor Jackie Oldham, MIMIT Director and MAHSC Health Technology Hub Lead, Richard Deed, TRUSTECH Manager.

For further information contact:

Aeron Haworth
Media Relations
Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences
The University of Manchester

Tel: 0161 275 8383
Email: aeron.haworth@manchester.ac.uk