Xiangtan on May 5 (ZXS) -- Customized family doctors are gradually entering the homes of ordinary Chinese people
Written by Zhang Xueying
The 81-year-old Liu Zefen lives in a densely populated old-fashioned community in Xiangtan, Hunan Province, and his wife has suffered from high blood pressure and diabetes for many years and needs long-term medication. In May this year, his wife suffered from foot edema caused by kidney disease and was unable to be hospitalized in time due to the shortage of beds. When family doctor Wang Jiaman brought medical staff to his home for treatment, Liu Zefen was surprised that medical treatment could be so "simple".
In 2016, China began to fully implement the family doctor contracting service, in which residents can obtain personalized and customized medical services by signing service agreements with primary medical and health institutions for a certain period of time and establishing long-term and stable contractual relationships with family doctors.
After years of development, this model has become an effective way to alleviate the problem of medical treatment in China.
"In the past, it used to take time and effort to see a doctor, but now you only need to go to the corresponding hospital department at the designated time." Liu Zefen told reporters that routine examination and rehabilitation treatment can be carried out in community hospitals, and when the family doctor believes that further examination is needed, the health file will be transferred to the higher-level cooperative hospital, eliminating the steps of queuing for registration.
"Family doctors are actually sinking high-quality medical resources." Xiong Haibo, the team leader who led the team to win the honor of "Excellent Family Doctor Team in Hunan Province", believes that China's medical and health industry is currently facing challenges such as an aging population and high incidence of chronic diseases, and the medical and health service model centered on hospitals and diseases is difficult to meet the needs of the people for long-term and continuous health care. Family doctors provide on-demand door-to-door services, so that residents in remote areas and inconvenient medical treatment can also enjoy systematic and continuous public health services.
Thanks to the contracted family doctor, Peng Aihua of the "post-95 generation" in Hunan has a relatively comfortable pregnancy. "My family doctor will remind me to have regular prenatal check-ups during pregnancy, conduct physical examinations and health files for the baby after childbirth, and record the baby's vaccinations and sick medications."
The implementation of the family doctor model has not been easy. Wu Long Lingdan, a family doctor in Xiangtan City, recalled that in the past, due to the inertia of medical treatment, residents preferred to go to the top three or specialized hospitals for medical treatment, which invisibly aggravated medical congestion and personal medical costs.
Wu Longling said that at first, everyone questioned the family doctor's diagnosis and treatment recommendations. But after a while, the beneficiary residents spread word of mouth and gradually changed everyone's perception. "Some contracted residents think it's good to have a doctor friend who talks about everything, so they recommend their acquaintances to sign a contract."
Today, all parts of China are exploring customized family doctor service models based on their own circumstances.
Sichuan Chengdu community microgrid members are included in the central family doctor team, and family doctors take the initiative to join each "microgrid" to establish close ties between the two sides. Anhui has achieved full coverage of family contracting services in urban and rural areas of the province, and established a provincial family doctor contracting service management information system to supervise family doctor signing and performance online in real time.
According to the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the High-quality Development of Family Doctor Contracting Services" jointly issued by China's National Health Commission and other departments in 2022, by 2035, the coverage rate of family doctor contracting services in China will reach more than 75%, basically achieving full family coverage. (End)