Analysis of the present medical service of China′s public hospitals as guided by China Healthcare Improvement Initiative

Abstract

Objective To objectively study the current progress of China Healthcare Improvement Initiative, and its effectiveness and shortcomings for further improvement. Methods Questionnaires were customized by expert consultation and pre-investigation, and distributed by the National Health Commission in April 2018 to the hospitals.Data of 5 469 hospitals were recovered and analyzed with a statistics software for descriptive analysis. Results Implementation progress of the five working systems varied with regions, and rooms of improvement were found in such aspects as outpatient appointment, clinical pathway management and social work system.In 2017, the proportion of outpatient appointments of 5 469 hospitals averaged 19.1%.Progress of the ten major service models also varied, as defects were found in such service models as continuous medical service, intelligent service, and interconnection service.In 2017, only 6.7% of the 5 469 hospitals had put in place hierarchical integrated clinical pathways within their medical alliances. Conclusions Improvement of the medical services calls for not only the efforts of medical institutions themselves, but also top-level design by the local health authorities.In particular, an online information platform should be established for the whole region, to unify the information standards and processes, and corresponding mechanisms and system support are needed. Key words: Health services administration; China Healthcare Improvement Initiative; Outpatient appointment; Clinical pathway; Intelligent hospital