China is set to run a pilot programme to implement and promote new standards for internet-based family doctor contract services.

Announced in a meeting with general practitioners led by the Chinese Medical Association, the said programme will be developed in partnership with major hospitals and the National Foundation for Australia-China Relations. 

WHY IT MATTERS

While there are no specifics provided about the said standards, these will be reportedly modelled after the standards developed by Chinese insurer Ping An for its online family doctor service, Ping An Family Doctor. 

Developed by the company's health tech unit, Ping An Health, the AI-driven service virtually connects patients with GPs – certified by the World Organization of Family Doctors – for medical consultations. It also facilitates referrals, hospital appointment bookings, nursing care, and post-discharge follow-ups. 

The Ping An Family Doctor platform also provides access to EHRs, allows the uploading of medical reports, and generates AI-driven personalised health plans. It can be integrated with smart medical devices and delivers near-real-time alerts for urgent health concerns. 

The membership-based service, introduced in 2022, now has nearly 13 million registered users. 

The state-wide standards for providing online family doctor service will be published on the platform of the Standardization Administration of China (an agency under the State Administration for Market Regulation) by the end of the year, Ping An shared in a media release.  

THE LARGER CONTEXT

The family doctor system was introduced as part of health reforms establishing primary health centres in China in 2019. Two years later, it became a national strategy to establish the GP system. In 2013, family doctor contract services were piloted in rural areas before its nationwide implementation in 2016. The Chinese government is promoting the family doctor service to make high-quality primary care services more accessible to the general population and help decongest hospitals. These services were previously only available to big hospitals, which also had to deal with overwhelming admissions. 

In China, family doctor contract services come in three packages: a basic, free public health service package, a basic package with options for personalisation, and an integrated medical treatment and nursing care package.  

In recent years, there have been challenges in promoting these contractual services despite helping bridge access to quality care. In particular, people are still hesitant to sign up for the service. A study proposed increasing health insurance reimbursements, reducing out-of-pocket expenses of patients, and providing patient discounts as ways to address people's reluctance.