2014 National Meeting for Maternal and Child Healthcare kicks off

(chinadaily.com.cn)

Updated: 2014-05-13

The 2014 National Meeting for Maternal and Child Healthcare was held by the National Health and Family Planning Commission in Beijing on April 17. The annual meeting concluded the achievements in improving maternal and child health and singled out some key areas for further improvement in the next stage.

Li Bin, minister of the National Health and Family Planning Commission, participated in the meeting. Wang Gouqiang, vice-minister of the commission, delivered a work report. Li pointed out that the CPC Central Committee and the State Council have always attached great importance to the work of maternal and child health and sees improvements in health for women and children as a key strategic demand of China’s economic and social development. The health of women and children is an important cornerstone for the public health of the entire country. It lays a solid foundation for the economic and social development of China. Li emphasized that 2014 is an important year for innovation in health reform. Facing the new situation and new tasks, health planning administrative departments at all levels should deeply understand the importance of maternal and child health. Wang Guoqiang summed up the progress made in maternal and child health in 2013 and analyzed the difficulties and challenges of the future. He outlined this year’s work plan with a focus on six key aspects.

First, China should work to strengthen organizational leadership and accelerate the integration of all resources to improve maternal and child healthcare. Second, China should creatively carry out services to improve local maternal and child healthcare. Third, China should strengthen system construction and improve maternal and child health service capabilities. Fourth, China should provide high-quality service to meet the health needs of women and children. Fifth, China should focus on improving related policies. Sixth, China should establish long-term mechanisms to strengthen maternal and child health services supervision.