The national health and family planning publicity work conference was held in Beijing from Jan 21-22. The meeting aimed to deepen implementation of the spirit of the 18th CPC National Congress, the third and fourth plenary sessions of the 18th CPC Central Committee, as well as General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speeches. It also sought to carry out the requirements of the 2015 national publicity ministers' meeting and the national health and family planning work conference, summarize work, analyze the situation, and deploy the health and family planning publicity work in 2015. Cui Li, vice-minister of NHFPC, attended the meeting and delivered a speech.

In her speech, Cui pointed out that all parties should act on the current situation, deepen understanding of the importance and urgency of health and family planning publicity work, and enhance the sense of responsibility and mission in publicity work. She stressed that health and family planning publicity work should follow the NHFPC's overall work deployment; serve major reform measures; take the lead in news publicity and public opinion guidance; and take the initiative to plan, release and guide publicity information. Relevant parties should strengthen publicity of exemplary events; create new highlights in social publicity; and let positive social events play a role in ideology guidance, spiritual motivation and moral demonstration.

All personnel should insist on giving priority to prevention, enhance health, promote brands, and strive to upgrade the health literacy of urban and rural residents. Tobacco control in accordance with the law should be boosted, and smoking control publicity and education should be strengthened to realize a smoke-free life. Health and family planning workers should pay attention to value guides, take care of online public opinion guidance, realize positive public opinion online, strengthen capacity building, and build a high-caliber health and family planning publicity team.

Cui called upon everyone to focus on the big picture, pay attention to small details and conduct solid work to ensure thorough publicity work. She asked all parties to strengthen leadership and overall coordination, insist on reform and innovation, shift work ideas, make joint efforts, strengthen the implementation of supervision, and pay attention to actual work effect to create a good public opinion environment for health and family planning reform and development.

A total of eight provinces and cities, including Beijing, had an exchange of ideas through speeches. Representatives from the NHFPC's departments, various provinces (autonomous regions and municipalities), municipalities with independent planning status, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps' health and family planning commission were present at the meeting.