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Development |
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After
the founding of New China in 1949 the Chinese government put the
emphasis of medical work on the rural health services, disease
prevention and health care and giving a boast to traditional Chinese
medicine. Great efforts were devoted to setting up medical and public
health institutions. A nationwide public health network has now been
basically formed and an adequate contingent of medical personnel has
been established. China’s medical education system is complete, and a
large group of medical experts has been trained. By the end of 1999,
there were 310,000 public health institutions (including clinics) with
3.16 million beds, of which 2.93 million beds were in hospitals and
clinics. There were 4.46 million medical personnel, including 2.05
million doctors and 1.25 million nurses. The public health
institutions, hospital and clinic beds and medical personnel increased
by 83 percent, 58 percent and 81 percent, respectively, compared with
those in 1978.
The technical level of public health has improved greatly, and the
management and supervision of medical work have been strengthened. An
urban and rural medical insurance system combining state planning and
fee paying has been established. Traditional Chinese medicine and
Western medicine have been promoted simultaneously. The incidence of
many epidemic diseases has dropped considerably, and some endemic
diseases are now under control. Rural health work has been improved,
greatly contributing to the overall health of the population. The
average life expectancy of Chinese people, the death rate of infants
and childbirth death rates have almost reached the levels of developed
countries.
Development of Medical and Health Institutions, Hospital beds and
Medical and Health Personnel
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Year
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1949 |
1978 |
1985 |
1990 |
1998 |
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Medical &
health institutions |
3,670 |
169,732 |
200,866 |
208,734 |
310,000 |
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Hospital beds
(1,000) |
85 |
2,042 |
2,487 |
2,925 |
3,140 |
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Medical &
health personnel (1,000) |
505 |
2,464 |
3,411 |
3,898 |
4,420 |
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The Establishment of the
rural health service Network |
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Of
China’s 1.2 billion population, 900 million people live in the rural
areas. The Chinese government has constantly paid great attention to
rural medical and health work. Especially since the reform and opening
started in 1978, further developing rural medical and health work to
enable rural people to enjoy basic medical health care is one of the
goals of China’s medical and health departments. Currently counties,
townships, and villages are covered by a medical and health network.
In 1998, China had 2,037 county-level hospitals, 50,600 township-level
hospitals and 728,800 village clinics. About 89.51 percent of the
country’s 730,000 villages have clinics. There were also 1.3276
million village doctors and paramedics, among whom 74.59 percent were
doctors. A good foundation has been laid for realizing the World
Health Organization’s goal of universal health care in China by the
year 2000. |
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Reform of the Medical and
health care system |
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The
current medical insurance system was based on the free medical care
and labor insurance system established in the early 1950s, under which
medical expenses incurred by workers and staff are covered by the
state. This system has played an important role in guaranteeing the
health of workers’ and staff members, promoting economic development
and safeguarding social stability. In the wake of China’s economic
development and the deepening of the economic reform, defects in this
system have gradually emerged. The rapid increase in medical expenses
has brought a heavy burden on the state and some enterprises. At the
same time, a lot of medical resources have been wasted. But in the
countryside, only a few well-off regions provide free medical care,
while in other regions medical expenses are paid by the local people
themselves. So reform of the medical services system is a matter of
urgency.
The compensation mechanism of medical institutions has to be
straightened out in the course of the reform of the medical and health
care system for urban workers and staff. This means that the medical
insurance system should be both socialized and localized. Medical
expenses should be rationally allocated among the state, units and
individuals. In the countryside, a cooperative medical service system
should be further promoted and perfected. Organized and led by the
government, the cooperative medical service system is run by the local
people and subsidized by the state. Peasants take part in it
voluntarily. The funds come mainly from peasant households,
collectives and the state. In this way, basic medical services can be
guaranteed in the countryside and the danger of rural people becoming
impoverished because of illness can be averted. |
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Maternity and Child Care |
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Since
the founding of New China, the government has paid special attention
to the medical and health care of women and children. Legislative and
supervisory bodies to ensure women’s and children’s legal rights and
interests have been established at the NPC and the CPPCC. Women and
children’s work committees have also been established by the State
Council and local governments. By the end of 1998, China had 2,724
maternity and child-care organizations, including 1,507 county-level
ones, with a total of 73,000 medical technicians. A maternity and
child-care network has been formed in both urban and rural areas.
To ensure the health of women, the state has formulated the Law for
Protecting Women’s Rights and Interests, Law on Maternity and Child
Care, Labor Protection Regulations for Female Workers and Staff, and
Provisional Regulations for the Health Care of Female Workers and
Staff. New measures have been adopted for the health care of pregnant
women and for safe child delivery to protect the safety of mothers and
babies. A health-care program for pregnant women has been promoted,
i.e. setting up a file at the beginning of pregnancy, regular
examinations before delivery, nursing for endangered pregnant women,
hospital delivery and post-natal visit. All these measures have
greatly improved the quality of maternity and child care, resulting in
a remarkable drop in mortality for pregnant women from the
pre-Liberation15 per thousand to the present 0.619 per thousand.
Since
the reform and opening policies were introduced at the end of 1978,
the Chinese government has attached special attention to children’s
welfare. The Program for the Development of Children in China in the
1990s and the Law on the Protection of Minors were formulated,
providing a better environment for children to grow up, be protected
and develop. At the same time, the Program for the Promotion of Breast
Feeding was also formulated and the baby-friendly action was launched
on a large scale. China has built 5,890 baby-friendly hospitals, and
child mortality has dropped to 31 per thousand, from 200 per thousand
before Liberation. Since the implementation of planned immunization
for children in 1978, the development level and nourishment situation
of Chinese children have kept improving. |
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Disease Prevention and
Treatment |
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Chinese
public health departments at all levels conscientiously pursue the
principle of putting prevention first. Active steps are taken to
prevent and, if necessary, treat contagious, endemic, parasitic and
other diseases. In the early 1960s China entirely eradicated smallpox,
more than a dozen years ahead of the rest of the world.
In the 50 years since the founding of New China, epidemic prevention
stations were established by governments at various levels all over
the country, which have played an important role in disease prevention
and treatment, and hygiene supervision. In 1998, epidemic prevention
stations totaled 4,018, among which 1,696 were county-level epidemic
prevention stations and 1,889 were specialized clinics and health
stations.
In order to eliminate and control epidemic and endemic diseases, the
Chinese government has issued a series of laws and regulations, such
as the Law on the Prevention and Treatment of Epidemic Diseases,
National Plan of Action for Eliminating Poliomyelitis by 1995, and
Program on Eliminating Iodine-Deficiency Diseases by 2000. Active
measures have been adopted for promoting immunization programs.
Inoculation of children has successfully controlled the incidence of
measles, polio, diphtheria, whooping cough and epidemic encephalitis
B. The incidence of these diseases and the death rate of children from
them have dropped greatly. At present, disease prevention and
treatment and patriotic hygiene work are making great progress. As a
result, the health of all China’s citizens has greatly improved since
1949, and the average life expectancy has increased from 35 to 70.
Today, the main causes of death are malignant tumors, cerebrovascular
diseases and heart diseases, which are typical causes of death in
developed countries. Relevant research institutes and medical
organizations are currently actively pursuing better methods for the
prevention and treatment of these diseases, while monitoring the
incidence and infection trends of epidemic diseases in both China and
foreign countries. In the past 50 years marked achievements have been
made in disease prevention and treatment in China. The Disease Control
Department of the Ministry of Health won the special achievement prize
for public health work awarded by the WHO in 1996. |
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Traditional Chinese
medical (TCM) and Pharmacology |
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Chinese
medicine and pharmacology are important component parts of China’s
splendid national culture. Chinese medicine and pharmacology have made
tremendous contributions to China’s prosperity throughout the
country’s history of several thousand years. They are noted worldwide
for their outstanding curative effects, strong national character,
unique method of diagnosis and treatment, systemic theories and vast
accumulation of historical records and materials, making it common
wealth of the medical treasure-house of mankind. Chinese medicine and
pharmacology have shown great vitality for several thousand years.
They are also a valuable complement to the modern techniques of
medicine and pharmacology.
The origin of traditional Chinese medicine and pharmacology can be
traced back to primitive society. Medicine was originally created in
the struggle against Nature by the ancient Chinese. In the course of
food gathering, they found that some food items could alleviate the
symptoms of or cure diseases. That was the origin of TCM. When the
ancient Chinese lit fires to warm themselves, they also found that
heated stones and sand wrapped in animal skin or bark could reduce
pain. Through repeated practice and improvement, moxibustion methods
were gradually developed. In the process of using stone instruments
they found that when a part of the body was hit by something, pain in
some other part of the body might be relieved, and so stone or bone
acupuncture needles were invented. After a long period of development,
the theory of collateral channels took shape, and the technique of
acupuncture treatment was perfected.
The basic theory of TCM shows its unique understanding of the zang-fu
organs, meridians and collateral channels, qi, blood and body fluids,
and pathogeny. The diagnostic method of TCM consists of the “four
examination methods” and the differentiation of symptoms. The former
refers to visual inspection of the complexion, auscultation, reading
the pulse and directly asking about the patient’s conditions. The
differentiation of symptoms means after the actual circumstances are
gathered through these examinations and analyses, the proper method of
treatment is induced. TCM pharmaceutical treatment is often
accompanied by acupuncture, massage therapy and qigong (breathing
exercises).
The Yellow Emperor’s Canon of Medicine, the earliest and most
comprehensive medical classic from both the theoretical and clinical
standpoints, was compiled more than 2,000 years ago, and laid a
theoretical foundation for TCM. Later, other authoritative medical
books appeared, such as the Classic of Difficulties, Treatise on
Febrile and Other Diseases and Causes and Symptoms of Diseases. Shen
Nong’s Materia Medica is the earliest known pharmacopoeia in China.
The Materia Medica of the Tang Dynasty was the first pharmacopoeia
published by the government in ancient China, as well as being the
earliest state pharmacopoeia in the world. The Compendium of Materia
Medica compiled by Li Shizhen of the Ming Dynasty contains details of
1,892 kinds of herbs and 10,000 prescriptions.
Since the founding of New China in 1949, the government has paid great
and consistent attention to the development of TCM. In 1986, the State
Traditional Chinese Medicine Administration was established. Two years
later, the name was changed to the State Traditional Chinese Medicine
and Pharmaceuticals Administration. A series of policies, principles
and regulations have been formulated to promote the development of TCM
and pharmacology. At the same time, higher and secondary TCM education
has developed gradually. Regular education and other kinds of
education, such as correspondence and night school courses, as well as
teach-yourself programs have trained a lot of TCM personnel. A fairly
comprehensive TCM pharmaceuticals industry has been basically
completed. As China develops its modern medical system, active efforts
are being made to synthesize Western and Chinese techniques and
theories, with emphasis on the respective strengths and weaknesses of
both approaches. Chinese medicine, Western medicine and integrated
Chinese and Western medicine exist side by side. Medical workers
working on the integration of Chinese and Western medicine have done a
lot of research work on the basic theories and principles of treatment
of TCM with advanced techniques and modern methods. For example,
scientific annotations have been made on the principles of the zang-fu
organs, stasis of blood and acupuncture. Great achievements have been
made by China in the five fields of fractures treatment, acute
abdominal diseases treatment, acupuncture anaesthesia, replanting of
broken limbs and extensive burns treatment, the former three being the
result of combining Chinese and Western medicine techniques.
In recent years, great successes have been made by using combined
Chinese and Western techniques to treat cardiac and cerebral vascular
diseases, immunological diseases, tumors, fractures and some other
diseases. New progress has been made in the investigation of folk
prescriptions, in planting and processing herbal medicines and in the
development of drugs. Consequently more and more diseases can be
treated by TCM methods. TCM can ensure quick recovery for patients
suffering from acute abdominal diseases without the need for surgery.
Acupuncture treatment and acupuncture anaesthesia are now used in 120
countries and regions throughout the world. In 1987, the World
Acupuncture and Moxibustion Union was established in Beijing, with
nearly 100 countries and regions participating, giving a total of more
than 50,000 members. This is the first international academic
organization with its headquarters in China and with China as its
chairman. An international qigong conference was held in Beijing in
1989, with 29 countries and regions participating. In 1991, China
organized an international conference on traditional medicine and
pharmacology, and a Beijing Declaration was drafted by the several
dozen countries which participated. At present, China carries out
academic exchanges with more than 100 countries and regions throughout
the world.
Following the popularization of the use of natural medicines and
non-medicinal treatment in foreign countries, people all over the
world have become more interested in TCM and pharmacology in recent
years. Cooperations in TCM and pharmacolgy are increasing day by day.
Cooperative relations have been established between China and Japan,
the United States and Germany. In addition, seven traditional medicine
and pharmacology centers have been established in China by the WHO.
The number of foreign students who come to China to study TCM ranks
first among those studying natural sciences in China. An agreement has
been reached to run a TCM school cooperatively between Beijing
University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and a British national
university. It will be the first regular university in Britain, and
even in Europe, to teach TCM. Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK)
also have TCM schools. France, the United States, Italy, Australia and
some other countries have established TCM colleges or acupuncture and
anaesthesia colleges, and Munich University in Germany has its
Institute on the Theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine. |
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 Information
provided by
China National
Tourism Administration. |
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