Over the past ten years, there has been increasing cooperation between the Medical Universities of China and Optometry Schools in the United States. Central to this activity has been the China Optometry Resource Development Project: Efforts have included strategic planning for optometry in China, academic and pre-clinical faculty exchange, curriculum and course development programs, and collaborative research. With the assistance of these programs, the development of optometric education programs in China has been robust. However, an area of critical importance to educational and patient care outcomes is clinical education, and it has been in this area that our shared experience has been limited.

The recent implementation of a joint M.S./O.D. program between The New England College of Optometry and The Wenzhou Medical College has provided experience with the immersion of students in cross cultural clinical education systems. Faculty and students from our respective institutions have participated in the clinical education systems both the United States and China.

A comparative assessment of student experiences in disparate clinical education systems reveals significant differences between the United States and China. Fundamental distinctions include the relative role of diagnostic and therapeutic methods in patient care, the scope and depth of patient care assessment strategies, and educational quality assurance measures. These differences will be delineated and discussed within the context of the concept of primary care and each country’s health care delivery system.