Hospitals urged to report mental illness cases

China's National Health and Family Planning Commission issued a regulation on Sept 2 on reporting people with severe mental disorders who need to be hospitalized.

Hospitals should report such cases to an online system within 10 days of the diagnosis.

Those whose behavior has threatened others' safety and who are diagnosed with one of the six mental diseases should be put into the system.

The six diseases are schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, paranoia, bipolar disorder, and mental disorders caused by epilepsy or a mental disability.

The health commission has asked grassroots healthcare centers nationwide to keep information on people having these mental disorders, keep a record of their health conditions, and provide recovery programs for them when they are out of the hospital.

Also, the hospital should report to the online system when people with severe mental health disorders are discharged. The local mental health management center should inform the healthcare center in the patient's neighborhood to take over management of the cases.