Total Investment of RMB 300 Million! Treetree Medical Partners with Hunan University of Medicine to Accelerate Out-of-Province Dental Chain Expansion

Topchoice Medical and Hunan University of Medicine Jointly Establish Huaihua Stomatological Hospital. Image from the company’s official WeChat account

VCBeat (WeChat: vcbeat) has learned that Topchoice Medical and Hunan University of Medicine have jointly established the Huaihua Stomatological Hospital, also known as the Affiliated Stomatological Hospital of Hunan University of Medicine.

Huaihua Stomatological Hospital Co., Ltd. plans to have a registered capital of RMB 10 million, with a total investment scale of RMB 30 million. Among the shareholders, Topchoice Medical holds 70%, Hunan University of Medicine holds 20%, and the team of stomatologists holds 10%. Based on the investment scale of the company’s other branch hospitals in the past, it is estimated that there will be around 40 dental chairs.

Hunan University of Medicine is a state-run, full-time regular undergraduate medical institution. The university traces its origins to 1912, when it was founded as the Changsha Red Cross Nursing Training Institute by Mr. Yan Fuqing, a renowned medical educator and returned overseas Chinese who had studied in the United States. In 1924, the Changsha Renshu Nursing School was formally established.

In 1961, it was relocated from Changsha to Anjiang to establish the Qianyang Prefecture Health School. In 1984, it moved to Huaihua and was renamed the Huaihua Prefecture Health School. In March 2000, it was upgraded to Huaihua Medical College. In May 2014, with the approval of the Ministry of Education, it was upgraded again and renamed Hunan University of Medicine.

Oral care services constitute the company’s traditional core business. As its strategic footprint—“rooted in Zhejiang, expanding nationwide”—takes shape, and in light of the craft-intensive nature of the dental healthcare industry, the company has leveraged the “Hangkou” brand to pioneer a unique “Regional General Hospital + Branch Clinics” development model, with Zhejiang Province as its core. This approach has already begun to yield scale advantages.

As of the end of 2017, the company operated approximately 23 chain dental hospitals, with 1,411 dental chairs and a medical staff of 1,944, including 16 holders of doctoral degrees in medicine and 311 holders of master’s degrees in medicine. In the future, the company will continue to maintain its rapid expansion momentum within Zhejiang Province. Its“Dandelion Project” proposes to establish 100 branch hospitals across Zhejiang Province within three years, with significant results achieved within five years.

Meanwhile, leveraging its backing from the Cunji School of Medicine, which was jointly established with the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, the company has set up “Cunji”-branded tertiary dental hospitals in key provincial cities through an industrial M&A fund jointly established by the company, Haijun Technology, and its wholly-owned subsidiary. Among these, the Wuhan project has commenced trial operations, the Chongqing project is expected to become operational within this year, projects in Xi’an, Shanghai, Chengdu, and Beijing are progressing steadily, and the Yunnan project has taken initial shape.

Data shows that Topchoice Medical had previously collaborated with Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Hangzhou Medical College in China. This partnership with Hunan University of Medicine will advance Topchoice Medical’s expansion in Central China, following the establishment in July 2017 ofYiyang Stomatological HospitalSubsequently, Topchoice Medical further expanded its presence in Hunan Province.

Following the collaboration, both parties will achieve strategic cooperative advantages in the following areas:

First, we will comprehensively promote the long-term development of Hunan University of Medicine and achieve leapfrog growth in the key specialized disciplines of its School of Stomatology. By deepening the integration of industry, academia, and research as well as university-enterprise cooperation, and aligning with market-oriented social demands, we will emphasize students’ practical skills and standardized residency training. Through these joint efforts, we aim to cultivate higher-quality professional talents in stomatology.

Second, for the newly established “Stomatological Hospital Affiliated to Hunan University of Medicine,” the university will integrate the professional personnel and operations of the existing School of Stomatology of Hunan University of Medicine and the Department of Stomatology of the Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Medicine into the affiliated stomatological hospital for unified operation and management (while still retaining the organizational structure of the Department of Stomatology of the Affiliated Hospital and undertaking its daily medical tasks). The stomatological hospital will be established through leased premises, with a total initial investment of RMB 30 million.

Leveraging the resources of both parties, we will expand by establishing new branch clinics in surrounding areas, including Changsha, Loudi, Zhangjiajie, Jishou, Tongren (Guizhou), and Kaili. We will host more than two academic conferences and training sessions with nationally renowned experts annually, along with at least four provincial-level academic training programs. Our goal is to become one of the leading regional dental institutions in Hunan Province and the most influential entity in the Wuling Mountain area.

Third, the newly established “Affiliated Stomatological Hospital of Hunan University of Medicine” shall allocate no less than RMB 300,000 annually to specially support the development of disciplines and majors and the building of talent teams at the School of Stomatology, Hunan University of Medicine. It will also engage in comprehensive strategic cooperation with the College in areas including scientific research, teaching, internships, standardized residency training, talent development, and operations across its disciplines of stomatology, nursing, medical technology, and medical imaging. Each year, it will selectively recruit a certain number of students from Hunan University of Medicine based on merit.

Fourth, the newly established “Affiliated Stomatological Hospital of Hunan University of Medicine” will foster an academic atmosphere, promote disciplinary development, and build a brand for high-quality oral healthcare. It aims to develop into a center for the diagnosis and treatment of oral diseases and a training base for primary-level stomatological talents in western Hunan and the Wuling Mountain region. The hospital will undertake oral medicine teaching, scientific research, clinical internships, standardized residency training, and continuing education for Hunan University of Medicine. Meanwhile, it will implement national initiatives such as pit and fissure sealing for young permanent teeth and oral health education projects mandated by the Hunan Provincial Health and Family Planning Commission, thereby fulfilling its responsibilities in providing basic medical care and social security.