Doctors' low incomes threaten rural clinics
Source: Xinhua |
March 9, 2013, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
LIU Heping quickly packs his thermometer, blood pressure monitor and other equipment in a worn bag after treating a patient with a fever.
The 61-year-old village doctor is about to visit his 10th patient of the day in the village of Taoling in east China's Jiangxi Province.
Liu and Yu Baohe are the village's only doctors, although the local population numbers around 1,500 people.
For the past 40 years, local villagers have relied on the pair to take care of them.
Liu and Yu built their own clinic in 2006 with government subsidies and 40,000 yuan (US$6,424) of their own money. Before that, Liu's home served as the village's only clinic.
The clinic is just 100 square meters and contains a pharmacy, consultation room, injection room, duty room and observation room. Basic medicine is sold at cost at the clinic.
Although villagers now enjoy better services and cheaper medicine, Liu is still concerned about their future. He has reached retirement age, but can't retire. "I receive a monthly subsidy of 2,000 yuan as a village doctor. But I only get a pension of 65 yuan each month if I choose to retire, which is not enough to get by," Liu said.
Low incomes and pensions are a common problem for rural doctors, a fact that has led young doctors to avoid such areas.
This has created a dilemma in which older doctors are retiring or overworked while younger doctors aren't lining up to relieve them.
Taoling is in Duchang County, where 70 percent of its 1,035 doctors are over 40 years old.
"The successor dilemma will not only make it harder for villagers to see a doctor, but also compromise the rural health system," said Liu Shaohua, director of the Duchang Health Bureau. China has about 1.1 million rural doctors responsible for medical services in vast rural areas.
Even younger rural doctors worry about their future.
Li Feng, born in the 1980s, is a doctor in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Li makes just 1,000 yuan a month.
"I can hardly earn a living when 500 grams of pork can cost over 10 yuan," Li said.
The 61-year-old village doctor is about to visit his 10th patient of the day in the village of Taoling in east China's Jiangxi Province.
Liu and Yu Baohe are the village's only doctors, although the local population numbers around 1,500 people.
For the past 40 years, local villagers have relied on the pair to take care of them.
Liu and Yu built their own clinic in 2006 with government subsidies and 40,000 yuan (US$6,424) of their own money. Before that, Liu's home served as the village's only clinic.
The clinic is just 100 square meters and contains a pharmacy, consultation room, injection room, duty room and observation room. Basic medicine is sold at cost at the clinic.
Although villagers now enjoy better services and cheaper medicine, Liu is still concerned about their future. He has reached retirement age, but can't retire. "I receive a monthly subsidy of 2,000 yuan as a village doctor. But I only get a pension of 65 yuan each month if I choose to retire, which is not enough to get by," Liu said.
Low incomes and pensions are a common problem for rural doctors, a fact that has led young doctors to avoid such areas.
This has created a dilemma in which older doctors are retiring or overworked while younger doctors aren't lining up to relieve them.
Taoling is in Duchang County, where 70 percent of its 1,035 doctors are over 40 years old.
"The successor dilemma will not only make it harder for villagers to see a doctor, but also compromise the rural health system," said Liu Shaohua, director of the Duchang Health Bureau. China has about 1.1 million rural doctors responsible for medical services in vast rural areas.
Even younger rural doctors worry about their future.
Li Feng, born in the 1980s, is a doctor in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Li makes just 1,000 yuan a month.
"I can hardly earn a living when 500 grams of pork can cost over 10 yuan," Li said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
