Liu Yandong, a member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China and vice-premier of the State Council, carried out a survey in Heilongjiang province recently. She pointed out that the country should further focus on reform in key areas, strengthen institution innovation and deepen healthcare reform. The benefits of reform should cover all Chinese people, she said.

The strategy of driving development by innovation should be implemented, and the science and technology service sector should be developed. Thus, the renovation of Northeast China’s old industry base will be supported.

Liu visited public hospitals, medical colleges and grassroots medical institutions in Harbin and Suihua, where she talked with doctors, hospital presidents, teachers, village doctors, patients and workers of the new rural cooperative medical system. She said that their work should focus on the patients to solve problems such as finding doctors and expensive medicine. Breakthroughs in medical care reform should be made in key areas.

Public hospital reform should solve the problem of “feeding hospitals by selling drugs” to push ahead reform in management, medicine purchase and personnel salary. The country should enhance the detailed management for medical insurance payment and further improve the mechanism of operation. The service of grassroots medical institutions should be improved by taking measures such as direct assistance and remote diagnosis.

The country should improve the essential drug system and grassroots medical institution reform. The construction of a village doctor team should be strengthened. Living and working conditions for doctors should be improved as well through different measures. Medical science and teaching should be developed in a coordinated way, with teaching and medicine research level promoted. Training of medical students should be enhanced, with suitable professionals trained for grassroots institutions.