A new exhibition exploring the life and legacy of Dr Yan Fuqing, a University of Liverpool alumnus and a pioneer of modern Chinese medicine, opened at Liverpool Medical Institution on 22 September 2026.
Dr Yan: A Pioneer – A Bridge of Sino-British Medical and Cultural Exchange is the exhibition’s first European presentation, following its debut in South Africa. Jointly presented by Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, Jiefang Daily and the University of Liverpool, it brings together nearly 50 archival documents, handwritten letters, photographs, newspapers, books, replicas and films.
Dr Yan Fuqing (1882-1970) became the first Asian graduate to receive a medical doctorate from Yale University in 1909. Before returning to China, he pursued further studies at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, University of Liverpool, where he encountered new approaches to disease prevention and public health. His signed student registration record, dated 15 September 1909, is among the exhibition highlights.
After returning to China, Dr Yan helped establish landmark medical schools that later became Xiangya School of Medicine at Central South University and Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University. He also played a leading role in founding the Chinese Medical Association and several major hospitals, and promoted preventive medicine and public healthcare. The exhibition presents his time in Liverpool as an early chapter in more than a century of medical and academic exchange between China and the UK.
Opening the exhibition, Professor Tim Jones, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Liverpool, described Dr Yan as one of the University’s most distinguished alumni. He said Dr Yan’s life showed how education could bridge cultures, advance knowledge and improve lives, and remained an example of academic excellence, international engagement and public service.
Professor Xu Jun, Deputy Dean of Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, said: “Liverpool holds great significance in Dr. Yan’s academic life—it was the final destination of his overseas studies before he returned to China. This crucial experience shaped his public health philosophy of ‘prevention first’ and his vision of establishing a systematic public healthcare system.”
He described the exhibition’s return to Liverpool as both a tribute and a new starting point for cooperation between China and the UK in medical education, public health and tropical medicine.
Nick Small, Deputy Mayor of Liverpool, highlighted the city’s long-standing relationship with China, including its friendship-city partnership with Shanghai. He said Dr Yan’s story demonstrated the lasting value of cross-cultural learning and expressed the hope that the exhibition would strengthen links between Liverpool and Shanghai.
Wang Na, Editor of Jiefang Daily and curator of the exhibition, said Dr Yan helped build a modern system of medical education in China and inspired generations of Chinese doctors and students to pursue further training overseas. She hoped visitors would leave with a stronger sense of his moral courage and of the century-spanning Sino-British medical and cultural dialogue he helped initiate.
The opening ceremony featured an exchange of commemorative artworks and historic documents, including a facsimile of Dr Yan Fuqing’s 1909 student registration record and a 1921 issue of Shen Bao, believed to contain some of the earliest detailed Chinese-language press coverage of the University of Liverpool.
A number of distinguished guests attended and spoke at the opening ceremony, including Rui Tang, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Manchester, and Professor Liang Yan, Counsellor, Head of the Education Section; Professor Sally Sheard, Dean of the Institute of Population Health & Andrew Geddes and John Rankin Professor of Modern History and Professor Peter McCormick, Associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Postgraduate Affairs and International Partnerships.
The exhibition is free to attend and runs at Liverpool Medical Institution, 114 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool L3 5SR, until 26 September 2026.
