FORTY years ago, there was a “hospital” built from a bamboo leaf shed in Litchi Park, Futian District. Now, this hospital has developed into a modernized hospital featuring the coordinated development of medical treatment and prevention, health care, teaching and scientific research, and has been selected as a key unit of high-level hospitals in Guangdong Province. The hospital, Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital, has witnessed great changes over the past four decades. And the changes also represent the enormous strides of Shenzhen’s health undertakings. Through a series of reforms, the city’s main health indicators have been stabilized at a level on par with those of developed countries and regions. The incidence rate of infectious diseases in Shenzhen dropped from 1,521.5 per 100,000 people in 1979 to 396.21 per 100,000 people in 2019. The average life expectancy of local residents reached 81.45 years last year, an increase of nearly four years within the past 10 years. Meanwhile, both the maternal mortality rate and infant mortality rate in the city have remained stable at the level of developed countries and regions. Shenzhen has continued to increase the supply of medical resources over the last 40 years. According to official data, from 2010 to the first half of this year, the number of medical institutions in Shenzhen has risen from 1,827 to 4,437. The number of hospital beds has grown from 22,800 to 56,500, and the number of beds per 1,000 people has increased from 2.2 to 4.2. During the 10-year period, the number of health care workers has jumped from 67,700 to 124,300, and the number of doctors per 1,000 people has increased from 2.05 to 3.03. Additionally, the number of tertiary hospitals in the city has increased to 47, and the number of 3A-grade hospitals — the top level of China’s three-tier hospital grading system — has increased from four to 18. At present, each district in Shenzhen has at least one regional medical center and a grass-roots medical group, and each community has one community health institution. In recent years, the city has also been actively introducing renowned medical resources from across the country to elevate its medical services and build a quality, efficient and integrated health care system. Shenzhen has also taken concrete measures to reduce the financial burden of medical treatment for residents, such as increasing government investment, carrying out centralized procurement of drugs, canceling the markup of consumables and adjusting 2,568 items of public hospital charges. By 2030, it is expected that the average life expectancy in Shenzhen will reach 83.73 years. Meanwhile, 11 comprehensive regional medical centers, 12 special disease medical centers and 20 grass-roots medical groups will be built in the city. By 2025, there will be more than five general practitioners per 10,000 permanent residents in the city. (Zhang Yu) | 