Lucky participants singled out for excellence in skills competition

The second Shanghai Skills Competition drew to a close recently, with 1,367 participants competing in 101 skill categories over three months.

A total of 114 contestants won gold prizes with 114 claiming silver and 95 bronze.

One of the champions was Min Sida, 21, a third year nursing student at Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences, a school that focuses on application of medical technology.

Min's excellence in this female-dominated profession is remarkable, though he was upfront about his weakness.

"Compared to predominantly female competitors, I was clearly not so facile in communication, nor so dexterous in the use of body languages, and this is where I have been striving to improve in my routine training," he said. As a student with limited clinical experience, Min intently practiced how to smile genuinely, before a dummy patient.

Attention to detail is crucial in nursing. "For instance, before I direct a patient to sit down, I would check if his feet has contact with the chair, if he is standing steady, or if he feels dizzy."

Of the more than 20 candidates who registered for the first-round contest in nursing last December, only five survived to attend the finals early this May.

As a gold medalist, Min is preparing for the the third National Vocational Skills Competition in September in Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan Province, this September, where finalists would vie for tickets to the 48th WorldSkills Competition to be held in Shanghai next year.

In fact, the current competition in Shanghai is much informed by the state-of-the-art concept from WorldSkills, with its commitment to raising the profile and recognition of skilled people, and showing how important skills are in driving economic growth.

Illustrious examples such as Min would inspire more young people to seek excellence in their chosen sector, by turning their passion into a profession, in an empowering transformation that helps reshape general societal perception of skilled careers.

The current competition also generously borrowed from WorldSkills in the drawing up of relevant technical standards, in creating new categories for competition, and in the organization framework that ensures the widest participation and representation possible.

There are more tech-heavy careers.

For instance, Tian Peng, a senior expert from Fudan University, explained how cutting-edge technologies like blockchain could be used in mundane life settings, such as obtaining prescription medicine from a pharmacy, where a prescription from a physician is needed.

"With the use of distributed ledge technology in blockchain, this (obtaining prescription drugs) would be much facilitated in a network of data which is open to medical insurance, pharmacy, and hospitals, though the use of encrypted communication ensures confidential transmission of information. The prescription, once signed and delivered, cannot be tinkered with, while the confidential personal data would be transparent to the party who need the information," Tian said.

From blockchain to labor dispute mediation, to waste water treatment, the scope of the skills represented in the competition signalled the broad spectrum of talent that is needed, and appreciated, in our society.

The competition wa also an open platform for demonstration and exchanges, drawing a large number of young spectators to observe on site.