Primary health services in China
Leth, K.; Mabeck, C.E.
Ugeskrift for Laeger 151(13): 859-861
1989
ISSN/ISBN: 0041-5782 PMID: 2718276 Document Number: 365524
The authors visited China in 1988 as part of a delegation of Danish physicians invited by Chinese medical authorities to visit Chinese colleagues and study China's health care system. The group visited installations in Laichou, a region with approximately 860,000 inhabitants on the Yellow Sea. The roughly 1000 villages have 33 hospitals with a total of 975 beds, a maternity center and 1034 rural health stations. The inhabitants have an average of 7-8 contracts with the health station/year -- nearly double the rate of Danes, even counting telephone contacts. Physical complaints are the most frequent, not surprising in an area where heavy physical field work is performed usually without the help of machines. Health station workers are employed by the village committee which pays 70% of the costs. Patients pay 30%. They can handle hygienic problems and health problems common in their area, for example, certain infections as well as premarital health checkups to ascertain that the prospective parents are healthy and do not suffer from genetic diseases. The center also offers contraceptives. When a woman becomes pregnant, she is offered regular health care examinations at the center or at the local health station, some of which offer amniotic testing. Births usually take place at the center.