Child health care in the new China

Chuan Jia Lin
Beijing Children's Hospital, Beijing, China

After Liberation in 1949, the People's Government formulated a policy according to which maternal and child health-care administrative organizations were set up at all levels above the county level. A basic network for child health care was established, consisting of the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health, district MCH and child health care institutes, and county MCH centres. At the grass-roots level, there is a child health unit in every hospital, clinic, or commune hospital in rural areas, and this is responsible for taking care of 0- to 7-year-old children.

The bureau personnel provide training and supervision as well as supportive materials to district- and country-level professionals. These professionals then train and supervise professionals and paraprofessionals working at the grass-roots level, where the tasks in child health care include dissemination of health and nutrition information, birth registration, morbidity and mortality records, preventive health care including surveillance of deficiency diseases - and immunization and treatment of common diseases.

It is realized that the development of a child health-care service is inseparable from political, economic, and cultural development. Progress is noteworthy in Beijing; however, in other areas many problems still exist and require further efforts to resolve them.