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Commencement of Nationwide Programme on Health Maintenance
Organised by the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SATCM), the first National Conference on the TCM Work cum the Kick-off Ceremony of Prevention-Oriented Healthcare Project was held on 25 January 2008 at Diao Yu Tai State Guest House, Beijing. State officials attending the conference included Chinese Vice Premier Ms Wu Yi, Minister of Health Mr. Chen Zhu and Director of SATCM Mr. Wang Guoqiang. Over 400 participants from Ministry of Health, Ministry of Science and Technology, State Food and Drug Administration and other government bureaus as well as medical experts and representatives from health/medical institutions met to discuss “Prevention-Oriented Healthcare” and related issues.
The theme of the conference was “Prevention – the Health Foundation”, which aimed to improve national health standard and raise public awareness of disease prevention. The Prevention-oriented Healthcare Project seeks to establish a new health service system incorporating Chinese Medicine (CM) as one of the core elements. With “Prevention” as the key feature, the new system would be an integrated service model covering health culture, health management and health insurance. For trial run, the SATCM had identified a number of clinics/hospitals including Guangdong Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Shuguang Hospital (affiliated with Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine) as pilot institutions.
The kick-off of the project also marked the start of a major medical reform from “Treatment” to “Prevention”. The new model would be people-oriented rather than disease-oriented and aims to boost the overall health of individuals. The initiative coincides with the CM principle which lays great emphasis on health promotion, maintenance and prevention. The challenge ahead is how to make the prevention-oriented healthcare approach become a reality, and how to efficiently persuade Chinese citizens and medical institutions to be more proactive about health issues. By promoting the “Prevention” concept and perfecting its service, the project will set a good example for healthcare development and help shaped the future medical system in China.
Sources:
State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine www.satcm.gov.cn
People’s Daily Online http://english.people.com.cn
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