The central government will accelerate the building of community
clinics in cities to give residents more choices and convenience
when they need medical treatment.
The new project was announced by Premier Wen Jiabao during the
ongoing annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).
Attending general hospitals is often believed to be troublesome
for Chinese, because of high costs and lengthy waiting times.
It is common for patients to have to wait for hours to complete
the registration process at large sites, and doctors sometimes only
have a short period of time to treat a patient.
In developed countries, however, the bigger hospitals deal with
only a small number of outpatients, with most medical services
being carried in community clinics, said Health Minister Gao
Qiang, who is also a member of the Chinese People's Political
Consultative Conference (CPPCC).
The government plans to press ahead with the establishment of a
new type of community-based system in urban areas, and registered
community health care clinics will be included in the urban medical
insurance programme, the premier told the session of the NPC on
Sunday.
From this year, urban areas will pilot projects of making
community clinics the first option for patients with minor medical
problems.
NPC deputy Li Dingguo, chief and professor of the
Gastroenterology Department at Xinhua Hospital in Shanghai, said
the initiative would save medical costs and bring more convenient
and better medical service for patients. Li has raised the
suggestion to the NPC with other deputies since 2003.
"The basic functions of community clinics shall prevent diseases
and treat common and minor diseases," said Li, adding that clinics
would be open 24 hours a day.
A reason that most patients currently choose large hospitals is
that they do not trust the health care service at community level
because of their inadequate medical facilities.
Under the scheme, the government will add more spending and
provide more training for community clinics.
In some places of China including Shanghai, there already is a
community-level medical service system.
In Shanghai, 18,500 community-level doctors have become "family
doctors" of common residents.
For example, Zeng Weihua, a doctor from Linfen Community Medical
Service Centre, has treated a patient with apoplexy, who found it
inconvenient to receive treatment at a large hospital.
"In the middle of 2001, when I got the disease, I could not move
and had to stay in bed. With the regular treatment and active care,
including massage, from Zeng, I was able to walk freely again two
years ago," the patient surnamed Wu, 65, told China
Daily.
(China Daily March 7, 2006)