Family doctors get new emphasis

Govt to promote grassroots care to gain efficiency

Family doctors can help ensure universal access to basic health and medical care across China and will receive new emphasis, according to senior leaders in the government.

Priority groups to be covered by family doctors' services include the elderly, those with chronic diseases, those with serious mental health issues, pregnant women, children and people with disabilities, according to a statement released after a conference of leaders earlier this week.

More efforts will be made to expand the availability of family doctors, such as making improvements to their career security, the statement said. The new focus will contribute to a better distribution of medical resources at the grassroots level, it said.

As the average age in China increases, it is expected that family doctors will play a bigger role in the basic health and medical care available to most residents.

Under a guideline to improve grassroots health services released by the National Health and Family Planning Commission last year, for example, every family in China is likely to have a qualified family doctor by 2020.

The services of family doctors will be promoted among key groups first, starting with the elderly, the guideline said.

The number of people 60 years of age or older in China hit 212 million at the end of 2014 and accounted for more than 15 percent of the population, according to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.

Prominent population experts estimate that by 2050 the older age group will account for as much as one-third of the country.

Han Zhengzheng, director of the Desheng Community Health Service Center, in Beijing's Xicheng district, said the number of family doctors at the center has grown to 23 since it started offering such services in 2011. It now serves nearly 18,000 residents.

"More than 90 percent of the patients that regularly see family doctors are over 60 years old," she said. "The family doctors mostly provide services aimed at common chronic diseases such as diabetes."

A resident of the Desheng community praised the convenience: "It is very nice to have doctors near home," the resident, surnamed Ma, said.

Ma, who has hypertension, said the health center is only a 10-minute walk from home, so she can easily visit her doctor, Fan Li, whenever she has problems.

"I come here mostly to get checked up and get medicine. I don't think it is necessary to go to a big hospital, where I have to wait in a long line to see a doctor," she said.

Unlike specialized doctors at big hospitals, Fan provides general healthcare and medical services, including health guidance.

Recently Ma signed up her 6-year-old son with Fan for advice on nutrition, she said.

Du Xueping, head of the general practice committee of the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, said promoting family medicine can optimize distribution of limited resources. Patients can solve many problems with a family doctor without turning to a big hospital first, Du said.

Contact the writers at wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn and shanjuan@chinadaily.com.cn