Health authorities ask all major hospitals to set up weight management clinics

All major hospitals will set up weight management clinics by the end of June this year, according to a notice released by the National Health Commission and the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine on Thursday.

The requirement applies to all general hospitals, pediatric and TCM hospitals under direct administration by the commission, the administration and provincial-level authorities.

Other tertiary hospitals sitting on the top of the nation's three-tier hospital system are also encouraged to establish weight management clinics.

Official data shows that the rate of obesity and overweight among Chinese people aged 18 and above has exceeded 50 percent and the obesity rate among children and teenagers aged six to 17 is close to 20 percent.

Excess weight is a major risk factor for diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. 

The document said that a weight management clinic should be staffed by specialists in the fields of pediatrics, general practice, endocrinology, nutrition, psychiatry and psychology, cardiovascular medicine, gastroenterology, general surgery, rehabilitation and TCM.

It added that hospitals with strong capabilities are encouraged to establish obesity prevention and control centers and provide hospitalized services. Grassroots healthcare clinics will receive support to establish weight management clinics, with an emphasis on raising awareness, providing follow-up care and health management services, and facilitating referrals to major hospitals.

Internet technologies, artificial intelligence and wearable devices can be used by hospitals to help monitor and guide patients, it said.