China is currently a global hub, and it has made profound advancements in a wide array of fields such as technology, infrastructure, communication, education, agriculture and many other sectors. This has propelled China to become one of the most developed countries around the globe. In this regard, China has also made huge strides in its healthcare system, since health is an integral sector especially for the development of any country. To this extent, China has thus resorted to radically improving its healthcare systems by the day, in a bid to ensure that its citizenry gets the best healthcare services possible.
First and foremost, it is cardinal to address the various health care institutions in China. It consists of both private and public medical institutions that are largely accessible in most parts of the country. Public hospitals are primarily considered to be the most crucial healthcare facilities in a vast majority of the country, providing diversified health services that incorporate both inpatient and outpatient care. In addition, a majority of the public healthcare systems in the country also bear immense training, teaching, as well as research responsibilities. Although most of the hospitals are situated in and around cities, major efforts have also been fast-tracked to ensure healthcare services are also accessible even in the rural Chinese settings.
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The Chinese Government is indefatigably working to ensure that it provides basic and affordable healthcare services to all Chinese residents in the near future. Currently, the public healthcare system in China is organized according to governmental administration structures: Central, provincial, regional (prefectural), county, as well as township levels. Each sub-district in urban areas and township in rural settings is usually in charge of several residents’ communities or villages. Every government unit at county levels and higher encompasses a comprehensive health bureau that is under dual control and management of the correspondent government and health bureau of the administrative level above it. Thus, the healthcare delivery systems in China comprise of several vertical segments (Sun, Gregersen, & Yuan, 2017) .
Alongside the medical services and institutions that are sponsored by the Government, China also takes great pride in having extensive private healthcare institutions that are stretched all across the country. There are numerous dispensaries, clinics and hospitals that are privately owned, and they are all aimed at providing healthcare services to the Chinese populace. Additionally, China has in the recent past become one of the most lucrative markets for reputable multinational companies dealing in healthcare services. Examples of these companies include Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly and many others, which have reported to experience explosive growth and expansion in China. Therefore, this proves that China is tremendously becoming a global hub not only for healthcare provision and research but also development.
All major cities in China have hospitals that specialize in different medical fields, and they are also adequately equipped with state-of-the-art facilities. Residents domiciling in urban are usually not provided with free medical services or healthcare, and they must either be insured or pay directly for treatment. The quality of the medical institutions such as hospitals varies from place to place. The best healthcare service providers in China are typically available in medical facilities that are foreign-run, and joint venture institutions that encompass Western-style modalities, with international staff. Such facilities are largely available in major urban centers such as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, among others. On the flipside, these medical facilities are usually highly expensive, and treatment costs staggering amounts of money as compared to public hospitals.
Public clinics and hospitals are easily available across many Chinese cities. However, the quality varies based on the location, and the best treatment services are primarily found in the public city-level hospitals as well as in smaller district-level medical institutions. Many public hospitals in cities have gaogan bingfang or rather V.I.P wards, which feature up-to-date healthcare technology alongside proficient and skilled personnel. They also provide medical care to non-Chinese residents and foreigners, since many have English-speaking nurses, doctors and clinicians. The V.I.P wards, nonetheless, charge relatively higher prices compared to other hospitals, but they are still reasonably affordable by Western standards.
Alongside medical institutions providing topnotch and modernized health care in China, traditional medicine is widely used across many parts of the country. There exist conventional Chinese treatment facilities as well as medical hospitals located throughout China, and they remain to be very popular treatment options for many Chinese residents. Cosmetic surgeries, dental care and other health-related provisions that meet international standards are available widely in many urban areas, although the costs vary.
China puts considerable efforts and investments in medical training, and measures have been installed to ensure that medical education is administered in a topnotch fashion that meets international standards. In fact, medical students are taken through a rigorous studying model that is British-oriented and must meet the required standards of education and practice before being certified by the Health Ministry. These stringent measures are aimed at ensuring that medical services are dispensed by highly qualified personnel, and this improves the health standards in the country.
Critically reviewing the financial mechanisms employed in the Chinese healthcare system is also salient. Public hospitals are largely funded by the Chinese government, which is utterly committed to ensuring universal healthcare for all its citizens. To further alleviate the burden in public medical facilities like hospitals, the Chinese government has substantially increased its funding and budgetary allocation for hospitals, rural medical clinics, health insurance schemes and the health sector in general. In fact, the healthcare expenditure stood at 6% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product GDP, in 2014 (Guo, 2017) . This allocation thus exemplifies the Chinese Government’s commitment to exemplary and universal health services for its citizenry.
Apart from funding from the Government, China has also drafted efficient insurance programs for its residents, with 97% of its population having basic healthcare insurance coverage. The vast majority of Chinese populace uses public health insurance platforms and systems which are categorized into various plans which inform the quality of medical services dispensed. The state-funded Chinese health system is subdivided into three major categories, and they are based on the employment status as well as where people live. The Urban Employee Medical Insurance scheme, for instance, is a very generous public health insurance program or plan compared to others, and employees, employers and local governments primarily fund it. Government organizations and employer companies contribute roughly 6-12% of the worker’s net salary to the scheme, and the employee contributes 2%. This scheme notably has the highest rates of reimbursement and average premiums (Guo, 2017) .
The Urban Resident Medical Insurance plan covers infants, students, unemployed adults, as well as retirees. This scheme is relatively less generous, considering the fact that local governments explicitly fund it. The third insurance scheme is the New Cooperative Medical Service plan, which was incepted in 2003 with a view to expanding coverage, especially to rural dwellers. This scheme is funded by the Chinese central government and is manned by China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission (Guo, 2017) . All these plans are aimed at improving the health status of the people living in China, by substantially reducing the burden that comes with footing treatment and healthcare expenses.
China has resorted to using Information technology and Health Information System (HIS) frameworks to improve healthcare systems in the country. In a bid to streamline the healthcare services and systems, China has immensely put emphasis on Healthcare Information Systems in the sector. HIS has immensely improved health services in China and has also enhanced further healthcare information for the available medical facilities. Today, Healthcare Information System has become a pivotal component of hospital management in the medical institutions in China.
The State Council, having recognized the fundamental role Healthcare Information System has played in the strive to provide better healthcare services for all citizens, requires all hospitals in China to invest not less than 5% of their net revenues in health information systems annually. In consequence, China has now widely adopted HIS across its hospitals, and it is steadily diffusing to all hospital levels, even in rural areas. These information systems have eased treatment modules, and have also contributed radically to health promotion in the country (Wang & Zheng, 2017) . Moreover, mainstream media is also largely involved in creating massive awareness to Chinese residents on various cardinal health-related issues, for example, HIV/AIDS, smoking, cancer, communicable diseases and much more.
China also has a number of associations and organizations whose primary obligation is to ensure that the healthcare systems run as smoothly as they should. The Chinese Medical Association is a classic example of the many associations dealing in healthcare in China, and it is constituted of technology professionals and medical scientists from China. It has hitherto positively contributed to the health discourse in China and has been a fundamental social force especially in the advancement and development of technology and medical science in China. Medical institutions also have the Chinese Hospital Association which brings together all healthcare institutions in China and ensures that they operate cohesively and holistically. Other important associations include the Chinese Medical Doctor Association, China Association of Medical Devices, among others. They all work under the guidelines stipulated by the Government, through the National Health and Family Planning Commission.
Inasmuch as China has made profound progress in its healthcare systems, challenges and shortcomings also abound. For example, there is significant inequality in healthcare between rural and urban areas, as well as inadequate healthcare providers, paramedics and other professionals in the public healthcare sector. China has a shortage of nurses and doctors, since even though more doctors and physicians are being trained, most of them leave mainland China or the countryside for towns and cities, thus leaving behind acute shortages of medical professionals especially in rural settings. Other notable challenges include unequipped facilities, poor remuneration and pay for doctors and other health providers, among many others. Nonetheless, the Chinese government has embarked on health reforms to tackle these challenges, and ensure that the healthcare system is under effective control.
In conclusion, China is not only a force to reckon with in sectors such as technology, infrastructure and agriculture, but also in health. The country has invested heavily in promoting health, with significant milestones such as universal health care and insurance, effective medical training, government funding to health and providing treatment subsidies, among others. China is further committed to even installing various other reforms that will improve healthcare in the country, and ensure Chinese residents get the best medical attention that is humanly possible. However, the country also faces a myriad of challenges especially in terms of inequalities that exist between the cities and rural China. In addition, there is the problem of a shortage of medical personnel. However, the reforms adopted by the government are geared towards solving these challenges and ultimately raising China’s healthcare.
References
Guo, J. (2017). How does healthcare in the U.S compare with China's? SupChina .
Sun, Y., Gregersen, H., & Yuan, W. (2017). Chinese Health Care System and Clinical Epidemiology. Clin Epidemiol , 167-178.
Wang, K., & Zheng, W. (2017). Healthcare Information Systems in China. SIRCA .
