Nearly five years after the Chinese government embarked on comprehensive reform of its healthcare system, a spokeswoman of the health ministry says a systemized and standardized health care system has achieved some success in a few pilot provinces.

“A few provincial governments have implementated the new mechanism,” said Song Shuli on Thursday at a press conference of the China National Health and Family Planning Commission, which outlines the latest development of health care reform at the local level.

The Chinese government accelerated medical reform in 2009 with the aim to ensure accessible and affordable health services for more people. The National Health and Family Planning Commission has been the major player behind the reform.

Mao Xiaowei, vice-minister of the commission, said at a healthcare reform meeting in February: “We will make sure more people at county levels see doctors near their hometowns; and this will help them save medical bills and ease pressures of overcrowded hospitals in big cities.”

Qinghai province introduced the new policy in 2013 with a bottom-up approach, ensuring people seek medical advice in community-based clinics first and only turn to hospitals for further treatment if needed.

Qinghai has seen a huge difference after only three months of implementing the new mechanism, according to Song. The number of people opting for community clinics has increased to 12 percent, while the figure for approaching big public hospitals has decreased to 18 percent.

“This is a big change because people prefer to see doctors in big hospitals,” Wang Xiaoqin, deputy head of the provincial health and family planning commission, said at the press conference.

The disparity of public health services between rural and urban areas, and between developed and underdeveloped regions, in China persist, posing a big challenge to the implementation of the new mechanism. People in many underdeveloped areas are concerned that they might be misdiagnosed by unqualified doctors and facilities.

A study on China’s health care reform in 2012 conducted by consultancy McKinsey & Co shows that hospitals in rural areas are hard to reach and lack high-quality equipment and manpower, leaving many to flock to urban centers for care. Consequently, the results are overrun, already underfunded city hospitals.

“Upgrading facilities and training resident physicians in community-based clinics are our top priorities,” the Qinghai healthcare reform head said. “A coordinated mechanism between different health services providers is needed to provide better services for our patients.”

“The core part of the healthcare reform” is the systemized health care system, said Professor Liu Guoen at the China Centre for Health Economic Research of Peking University. “High quality health resources including well-trained doctors, facilities, and funds are needed at the grassroots level.”

“But the mechanism can’t be promoted only by government administrative measures,” Liu emphasized.

The health commission will promote the systemized healthcare system into 16 more cities running pilot reforms of State-run hospitals, according to the spokeswoman at the press conference.