A new world-class hospital is expected to be constructed in the Zhuhai Special Economic Zone, Guangdong province, to provide international medical treatment and services.

The new MGH Hospital China will import equipment and staff from Massachusetts General Hospital in the United States when it is completed.

MGH Hospital China will also include research centers to help train Chinese doctors and special personnel, and to study the combination of Western and traditional Chinese medicines.

The hospital, which will have 500 inpatient beds in its first stage, will be funded and constructed by Zhuhai Hengqin Guolian Kanghua Medical Investment and managed by Massachusetts General Hospital and the Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

An executive from the publicity department of Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine did not reveal details about the project.

"We have just signed a framework agreement with MGH," the executive, surnamed Song, told China Daily on Wednesday.

Both sides will have further negotiations about the operation and management of the hospital in the future, she added.

The Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine is a major hospital in southern China, while MGH, which was built in 1811 and is in Boston, is one of the three oldest hospitals in the US.

Liao Xinbo, an inspector with the Guangdong Provincial Commission of Health and Family Planning, said MGH Hospital China will help import new and advanced medical management standards and values from Western countries.

He urged the government to introduce regulations to help guide foreign investors to build hospitals and related facilities on the mainland.

"MGH Hospital China will not have any negative impact on local State-run hospitals, as they target different patient groups," Liao told China Daily on Wednesday.

MGH Hospital China will mainly attract overseas investors, foreign tourists who have purchased commercial medical insurance, and some local high-income residents, he added.

It is the first time that a traditional Chinese medicine hospital from the mainland has signed an agreement with a big-name foreign hospital to jointly run and manage a hospital.

Insiders have said it would also have great significance in making traditional Chinese medicine more international.

zhengcaixiong@chinadaily.com.cn