Objective The study is to explore the effect of hospital historical culture on the ideological and political education of medical students.Methods The study investigates the humanism and professional self-identity of medical students in the setting of the 170th annual serial ceremony of Renji Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine by questionnaire investigation.Results 79.5% (124/156) of the medical students assumed that the education of schoolyard culture plays a role in the cultivation of humane spirit, while 50.0%(78/156) of the medical students supposed that it could enhance the professional self-identity of doctors. The education of schoolyard culture was proved to have positive influence in the development of humanism, professional self-identity, occupational emotion, professional behavior along with occupational values of medical students.Conclusions The ideological and political education staff in colleges should attach importance to the education of schoolyard culture, and regard it as the breakthrough point of ideological and political education.