Chengdu Second People’s Hospital

Chengdu Second People's Hospital is one of China's oldest Western-medicine hospitals outside the coastal treaty ports, with a continuous history stretching back to 1892 when Canadian medical missionaries founded the Gospel Hospital — the very birthplace of Western medicine in Sichuan Province. Today it is a Grade A tertiary general hospital with 2,600 beds and the leading dermatology center in Southwest China, holding the unusual distinction of housing both a dermatology research institute and a dedicated medical aesthetics college.

History and Scale: Founded by the Canadian Christian Mission as the Gospel Hospital (later renamed Renji Hospital), it served as the original training site for West China Union University (today's West China Medical Center at Sichuan University) medical students starting in 1914. The hospital was also the origin point of the Red Cross movement in Sichuan. After nationalization in 1950, it became the West Sichuan Second Hospital, taking its current name in 1952. The hospital now operates three campuses — Qingyun (the original, in Jinjiang District), Longtan (in Chenghua District), and Caoshi (a satellite clinic in Qingyang District) — with 2,600 planned beds and a medical staff of over 3,000. In 2025, it was officially designated as Sichuan University's affiliated Chengdu Second People's Hospital, formalizing a long-standing academic partnership.

Star Specialties: The hospital's Dermatology Department is a National Key Clinical Specialty and the undisputed leader in Southwest China for complex skin disorders. It houses the Chengdu Dermatology and Venereology Research Institute and operates a joint consultation center with the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences Dermatology Hospital in Nanjing — one of only a handful of such elite dermatology referral networks in China. The Burn and Plastic Surgery Department, a provincial key specialty with its own burn research institute, is a regional referral center for severe burns and post-burn reconstruction. The hospital has also built strong programs in Cardiovascular Medicine, Orthopedics, Rehabilitation Medicine, and Interventional Radiology — all provincial-level key specialties. It holds eight national-level clinical center designations, including Chest Pain Center, Stroke Center, Heart Failure Center, and Atrial Fibrillation Center.

Achievements and Recognition: As western China's oldest surviving Western-medicine hospital, the institution holds deep cultural and historical significance in Sichuan's medical landscape. Its dermatology program is consistently ranked among China's top dermatology departments in STEM evaluations and Fudan regional reputation rankings. The hospital has been designated a Sichuan Provincial Regional Medical Center in three specialties and has received multiple national honors as a model for healthcare service improvement. It is accredited as a national standardized residency training base.

International Services: The Qingyun campus operates a VIP and International Outpatient Clinic with English-speaking staff available during weekday hours. Given its historical missionary origins and continuing international connections, the dermatology and burn-plastic surgery departments have particular experience treating international patients. The hospital's 2025 affiliation with Sichuan University is expected to further strengthen its international patient infrastructure. Interpreter services can be arranged through the hospital's medical affairs office with advance notice.

Why Choose Chengdu Second People's Hospital: For international patients with complex or refractory skin diseases — psoriasis, severe eczema, autoimmune blistering disorders, or challenging dermatopathology cases — this hospital's dermatology department offers a diagnostic depth matched by few centers in China. Its 130-year history as western China's gateway for Western medicine gives it a distinctive institutional culture that international patients may find more familiar than the purely Chinese academic medical center model. The hospital also offers an unusually attractive value proposition: nationally elite dermatology and burn care at Chengdu's lower price point.